To the Elven Smiths They Were but Trifles
by Alfirineth
Summary: "...Yet still to my mind dangerous for mortals." Many years ago, Alcarnarmo stole one of these "trifles" from Elladan and traveled to our time. Now the time has come to return it and an unsuspecting human woman is caught in the middle. 241 of the Third Age.
1. Chapter 1

**Usual disclaimer: I am not Tolkien. But I love his work and am glad I get to enjoy his characters. **

**Thanks go to my Betas, chisscientist and LadyJ. **

**Never underestimate the power of a good Beta. **

**/\\/\\/\\**

_"In Eregion long ago many Elven-rings were made, magic rings as you call them, and they were, of course, of various kinds: some more potent and some less. The lesser rings were only essays in the craft before it was full-grown, and to the Elven-smiths they were but trifles—yet still to my mind dangerous for mortals. But the Great Rings, the Rings of Power, they were perilous." _

Gandalf

Chapter II: The Shadow of the Past, The Fellowship of the Ring

**/\\/\\/\\**

The day that Anna went through the portal was a day that started like any other; as most momentous days generally do. She had walked through that particular door into the back storage room countless times and come back out again alive and unscathed. There was nothing to tell her that the door had suddenly altered its chemical or physical make-up to suddenly whisk her from one world to another. Or from one time to another—she was never actually certain about that.

Today she went through the aforesaid storage room door to get bed sheets and various other paraphernalia to change a certain gentleman's bed and take said gentleman to the showers. A task assigned to her since she had rooms 1 through 8 in the East Hall this morning.

The conversation preceding her disappearance went something like this:

"Hello, Rudy, how are you feeling today?"

"Not so bad, lovely." This said with a rakish smile that only the very old can pull off without seeming licentious.

"Wonderful. Today is Tuesday and therefore it is your shower today. Any complaints?"

"Not with you here."

Treating such conversation with the adeptness of a long time CNA, (five years gives a lot of experience) she merely smiled and was grateful that younger men didn't use lines like this on her. Add to that the fact that Rudy had some form of dementia and everything just became sweet. In a weird sort of way. _Here's hoping my banter doesn't encourage him,_ she thought off-handedly.

"Let me take those sheets and we'll make your bed before your shower today."

Rudy waved her over to his wheelchair. She bent down, tucking stray hairs behind her ear as he kept beckoning, his expression very serious. "The elves are coming for you today." 

Anna raised her eyebrows, "Elves?" She tried to keep the disbelief out of her voice.

"Yes. I need you to give the Master this ring." So saying, he held out a fairly nondescript ring with a blue stone that she was sure she could have found at any local jewelry shop.

"Rudy, you know that I can't take this," she answered. "It's against the rules."

"Tell him that I send him my regards." He definitely hadn't paid any attention to what she had just said. Instead he grabbed her left hand and tried slipping the ring onto a finger.

She pulled back, trying not to injure him. He looked really frail today. "Rudy. No."

"It is very important that he get this ring back. I am entrusting it to you, Anna. You are the only one that can return it," he said, both pleading and commanding. It was a weird combination to hear, Anna thought back later. Nevertheless, as if compelled, she returned her hand to Rudy and watched as he put the ring on her first finger. Amazingly, it fit.

"You know that I am just going to give this to the nurse so that she can give it back to your family," she said.

Rudy just smiled and patted her hand. "You can do that—after you have gotten the linens to change the bed and I have had my shower."

Anna nodded to humor him as she stood back up, stripped the bed and headed for the door.

"Anna," he called. She stopped and turned back, arms full of sheets.

"Yes?"

Rudy mumbled something at her that she couldn't quite catch.

"Pardon?"

"I just said to have a nice trip. Be sure to give that ring to the Master of Imladris."

"I will remember. Imladris, you said?"

"Yes, that's the place. I think that you will like them."

"'Them' meaning the elves?"

"Anna. Be polite," he warned.

"When am I not?" She smiled and headed out the door towards the laundry. Once she had left the room and made it a few feet along the corridor, she snorted and shook her head. _That was a bit weird_, she thought. _That is the first time that I have heard him talk about elves. __I never thought him the type __to hallucinate about such things, _she thought. _But dementia does weird things to people. _

_OK, after work I need to pick up milk, celery, napa cabbage, carrots, bread...c_aught up in her mental grocery list, Anna didn't notice that the ring was growing a little warmer on her finger. Warmer than her skin should have made it the closer she got to the storage room.

She also failed to notice that Rudy watched from his door as she walked down the hallway. (And after she had gone in the storage room and hadn't come out in a couple of minutes, he wheeled himself down the hallway to verify that the room was indeed empty. Reassuring himself that all had gone according to plan, he decided that it was time for a nap. All this wheeling around was a bit much on an old man. He heard rumors later that Anna had gone missing, but since no one asked him directly if he knew anything about it...he told no lies. He steadfastly ignored the twinging of his conscience. She was young; she'd survive just fine. After all, he had.)

Anna headed unsuspectingly towards the fateful door. Why that storage room door? She was never to find out that just that morning, Rudy had wheeled himself out of his room and up to that very door and had done something that the nurse, Karen, witness to the event, could never figure out. There had been a slight flicker and a shimmer like a heat haze. She had ignored it because she was a firm believer in Science. It was probably only the lights flickering above Rudy's head. Karen made a mental note to have Housekeeping check on it as she walked up to Rudy and after a short, inconsequential conversation had wheeled him back to his room to await the CNA that was to bathe him. Anna, wasn't it?

Now we come back to Anna whose mind had smoothly switched gears as she dumped the sheets in the bin outside the door and headed into the laundry storage room.

_Now, I need flat sheet, fitted sheet, pillowcase... _And at that moment, she walked through the door.

..._towels... _Her heart rate suddenly skyrocketed as she realized that she wasn't in Kansas anymore—so to speak. Those large trees certainly didn't belong in the nursing home. The sudden breeze smelling of green things didn't belong there either. She immediately turned around looking for the door that she had just come through.

Nothing was there.

Anna started waving her arms in front of her. She no doubt hoped that even if her eyes were deceived that her arms would not be when they hit the door jam.

They hit...air. Anna fought the intense panic that was rising and the sudden desire to scream like a madwoman. She whipped around in a circle seeing nothing but tall, leafy trees and scattered underbrush as far as she could see, which wasn't that much, since she found that she was essentially in a shallow bowl that was probably a hundred yards or so in diameter.

Suddenly, a golden-haired man stepped out from behind a rather large tree trunk and started slowly towards her with his hands outstretched in what she later supposed was the equivalent of 'I mean you no harm'. She stood stock still for a moment, not believing anything about this situation. _That is amazing hair,_ she randomly thought. It was followed quickly by, _What in the world is he wearing?_

That momentary spell of unreality dashed itself as he spoke in a tongue as golden as his hair. Sounds that she didn't recognize. At all.

It had been too much unexpected change in too short of time. Anna lost the internal battle against terror and fled screaming into the forest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks to my Betas: chisscientist and LadyJ.**

**Author's Note:**

**Just to clarify things. **

"_Anything italic in quotes"_ **is English. **

_Anything outside of quotes and italic are the thoughts of the person stated._

**Everything else is some form of the languages of Middle-earth. Mostly Sindarin, I expect—but I am hardly an expert in the field of linguistics. I only dabble. **

**/\\/\\/\\**

_Midway this way of life we're bound upon, _

_I woke to find myself in a dark wood, _

_Where the right road was wholly lost and gone. _

Canto I, Inferno

Dante Alighieri

Translated by Dorothy L. Sayers

**/\\/\\/\\**

Glorfindel stood amazed, rooted to the ground for the space of a heartbeat before he took off running after her. Never before had he elicited that kind of reaction from a woman. Except from maybe his sister, a long, long time ago (and that particular occasion, best forgotten by all involved, had included a bag of snakes).

He and the sons of Elrond easily kept pace with her. This had been an unexpected arrival. Elrond sent them to meet and escort Alcarnarmo back to Rivendell (by force, if necessary). Only, Alcarnarmo hadn't come and this woman didn't appear to be a willing exchange.

Questions needed answering.

The elves moved quietly and easily through the trees, but Anna, used to moving along paved sidewalks, stumbled and fell, landing awkwardly in the brush. She was no longer screaming—just lying there grasping her ankle and trembling like the leaves near her.

Anna, for her part, was only sure of two things: her imminent death approached with the visage of an Adonis and her snapped ankle hurt really, really badly. She just lay there with hands wrapped around her ankle refusing to breathe for a moment, knowing that if she did breathe, she would cry, and the last thing that she wanted to do for some crazy in the woods was to cry. Feeling helpless enough as it was, she could at least keep the illusion of some control over her situation.

Meanwhile, Glorfindel motioned to Elrohir and they both began to approach her cautiously. Elladan, for a short moment, was out of sight.

"Are you injured?" Glorfindel asked.

No answer but ragged breathing. To be truthful, Anna didn't understand a word and was concentrating on the pain shooting through her lower extremity.

"We shall do you no harm." He spoke slowly with the calm sing-song voice that he used with skittish animals. Perhaps it would work with this mortal woman.

Still no answer, but her eyes were open now and focused on him and she grimaced and began to sit up cautiously. A movement to her left caught her attention as Elrohir moved forward. As she started like a wild doe and backed swiftly up as far as the bush allowed, the two elves stopped. She felt cornered and the sudden movement jarred her ankle. It proved too much for her and she started to cry in harsh, catchy breaths. _I am going to die here! _and _There goes the control of the situation,_ were two synonymous thoughts that our unfortunate heroine had.

Elrohir moved back a step or two and then they stayed like this for a few moments. Glorfindel kept up the easy speech that spoke of nothing. Anna sat there sobbing; so many diverse emotions coupled with the utter sense of helplessness coursed through her that she could do little else. Her foot refused to obey any commands that she sent down to it. _I can't move my toes. I can't move my feet. He's coming closer, now. _Still, they hadn't done anything to her yet._ Should I try to get away? Is it even worth it? OWW! They don't have any weapons out, but they wouldn't need any weapons with the way that I am feeling. Ow, ow, and __OW__! I really hurt! He isn't acting aggressive. He's acting like I am a powder keg. And I'm crying. I hate crying in front of other people! _This last thought merely made her angry but did nothing to stop the tears. Every so often she would try to draw a steadying breath, and that would help for a little bit, but it did little for the torrent of tears now that the floodgates were open.

Glorfindel had started moving forward again slowly, his movements and voice calculated to calm her hysterics. Elrohir wisely stayed where he was.

This process continued for a few minutes giving Anna the needed time to make a monumental effort of self-control—worthy of a ballad—and stop freaking out.

Glorfindel crouched down beside her and waved toward her outstretched leg. "May I tend to your injury?"he asked.

Anna made a split second decision that was an acknowledgment of the inevitable. Nodding slowly, she dashed away the tears from her eyes. She hoped that that wave toward her ankle meant what she thought it meant.

His hands gently worked over her ankle while he spoke over his shoulder. _ "_Elrohir, she is in need of a splint." Elrohir turned away and headed off into the forest.

"What are you called?" Glorfindel asked in Westron. When he received no answer, he tried the same question in Sindarin, Quenya, and a variety of other languages, including an archaic form of Dwarvish with the same response—a blank and watery stare.

"_I really have no idea what you are saying," _Anna said at last. Glorfindel checked momentarily in surprise. That was a language that he had never, in all his long life, ever heard before.

"Did you recognize it?" asked Elladan, cautiously approaching.

"No," replied Glorfindel, turning to face him. There was a moment of silence. Then he gave voice to the thought that had plagued them all since they had witnessed Anna's arrival. "Your father told us to expect Alcarnarmo. This woman is a complication, to be sure."

"She is wearing the ring. Surely she has either been given it by Alcarnarmo or has taken it from him," said Elladan gesturing toward her hand. "If stolen, it was a just punishment to have a thief steal from another thief," he added bitterly.

Anna watched both elves closely during this exchange. She held up her hand, naked except for the ring in question. _"Are you talking about the ring? Maybe I am just jumping to conclusions or whatever, but is this really all about a ring? Rudy gave this to me just before..."_ her voice trailed off in a bit of a shock. Despite being an avid reader of science fiction and fantasy, she had her feet firmly placed in Science. Now there was a sudden possibility that things weren't always what they seemed...that magic, so-called, really did exist.

However, in order to keep what composure she had left in this possible captive situation that could go south at any moment, she refused to even consider the option of magic. _A temporal wormhole, maybe? _she thought, taking comfort in the knowledge of numbers attached to the theory. Anna chose not to dwell on the fact that this particular brand of science was not any more proven than the idea of magic.

In order to fight the panic that started to percolate once again through her system, she closed her eyes and began to count to a hundred in Japanese; a habit of many years. It was perhaps unfortunate that she began whispering her count under her breath. Elladan, who firmly believed in magic, assumed that it was a spell of some sort. A chant of dark magic of the worst kind.

"Daro!"

This command to stop was accompanied by an arrow swiftly notched and ready for flight not four feet from Anna's face. She snapped her eyes open, focused on the dark-haired one with weapon ready and froze. She knew that any movement, any word, would end in her sudden death.

Glorfindel held up a hand. "Elladan, I do not think that it was a spell." The frozen tableau remained. "There was no power involved," he continued calmly. Elladan slowly lowered his bow and stepped back, wary enough that he still had the arrow set in the bowstring. Long years had given him implicit trust in his companion's judgment, but it never hurt to be prepared. Anna dared a breath.

Elrohir had just returned with their three horses following. "What is amiss?" he asked, eyeing his brother's taut form. He never really expected an answer, after all he had been with his occasionally taciturn brother since birth. After waiting for the briefest of moments, he turned back to the saddle-bags and pulled out the rolled linen and balm that was part of their field aid equipment and brought it to Glorfindel.

"What are you called?" he asked Anna as he handed the supplies over to Glorfindel and backed up a pace to stand closer to his brother.

Anna shook her head. _"I don't understand a word that you people are saying."_

Elrohir addressed his next question to his companions, though he kept his mild gaze on Anna. "Does she not understand us?"

"Not that she will acknowledge. The tones and sounds of her own tongue are...quite unlike anything I have heard before." Glorfindel turned again toward the unknown human woman whom we know as Anna. "May I?" he asked while gesturing towards Anna's ankle.

For herself, Anna desperately hoped that she understood him correctly and nodded.

"_No, don't take the shoe off!" _she said quickly, arresting his movement with the shoe.

"This balm alleviates pain and swelling," Glorfindel said to her.

Elladan snorted, "If she chooses to suffer, let her suffer." He removed the arrow from the string and replaced it in the quiver.

"Peace, brother." Elrohir stated softly. "We do not know all ends as yet."

"We know that she has that ring, by fair means or foul," Elladan declared heatedly.

"And that may be the crucial difference. If fair, then should we be any less accommodating than to any other guest? And if foul, then she will be dealt with accordingly."

"And it may be that it is purely chance that brought her here." Glorfindel added while putting some balm on her exposed leg. "I sincerely doubt it, however."

In the meantime, Anna reveled in the amazing and almost instantaneous relief that the topical analgesic offered to her. _"That is amazing stuff. How long does it last? Could we put a little bit more down on my foot?" _she asked. Belatedly, she realized that that was what the golden-haired one was trying to do earlier. She gritted her teeth and took off her shoe, slowly pulled off her sock and then wiped her running nose on her sleeve.

The sight rather disgusted Elladan. Elrohir pulled a linen handkerchief out from somewhere and handed it to Anna—who took it rather hesitantly. _"Thanks," _she said._ "I think,"_ she added under her breath and steadfastly put out of her mind the thoughts of any sort of bacteria or virus that accompanied the fabric as she blew her nose. At least it felt clean and unused. There was that hope. _Oh, for a Kleenex,_ she thought.

"Are you confident that this woman cannot understand us?" Elladan said.

"Quite sure," answered Glorfindel, smiling at Anna. "She, of herself, is of little danger to us. As for the other matter," his smile slipped a little, "we shall counsel with your father."

Deftly, he proceeded to wrap the injured ankle using a method unfamiliar to Anna. She said nothing about the unusual bandaging technique. After all, that cream was amazing! Maybe this would work better, too.

At that moment, somewhere deep in her soul, Anna suddenly knew that the golden-haired Adonis was safe. The other two look-alikes she wasn't sure about, but for some reason there was a feeling, a gut instinct, that told her that she could trust Adonis. Now, even though her head was crying DANGER, her heart just wasn't in it anymore.


	3. Chapter 3

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks to my Betas: chisscientist and LadyJ.**

**/\\/\\/\\**

"_Anger be now your song, immortal one."_

Book One: Quarrel, Oath, and Promise

The Iliad

Homer

translated by Robert Fitzgerald

**/\\/\\/\\**

It was now early evening and the air was warm and dry. The trees above Anna rustled gently in the breeze that barely whispered along the ground. Glorfindel left her sitting on the ground with her bandaged leg out in front of her while he went over to his horse.

"Gi suilon, Asfaloth," he greeted the stallion and ran a hand down his side while he moved towards the sadde-bags and rummaged around for a few seconds. Asfaloth bent around and snuffed at Glorfindel who absently rubbed his face. "There will be no treats until we return to the stable," he said affectionately. He continued looking; ah, there it was. He pulled out a dark cloak that should suit his purpose well. Turning, Glorfindel walked back to Anna and unfolded it, showing it to her.

"Here is something to keep you warm," he said.

Anna screwed up her face as she realized that it wasn't a blanket. A cloak! Of all the crazy things. _Well, I suppose if we are going to stick with cosplay, I shouldn't be expecting anything else. _

Glorfindel came over and held it out to her. She took it a little reluctantly and held it in her lap, her fingers going over the fabric of their own accord. _Where is this place exactly? Am I dead? Am I crazy? _All of these questions twirled uselessly around in her mind for a few seconds before she decided that she really didn't want to know if she was crazy or not.

She concentrated instead on the feel of the fabric under her fingers, soft and surprisingly lightweight. There was no clasp for it was sewn together a little below the neck. Anna found this design feature a little anachronistic. Like a hoodie without sleeves.

_This is reality,_ she decided._ At least it is my reality now. My ankle hurts too much for it to be otherwise. _

Meanwhile, Glorfindel had turned back to have a quiet consultation with the brothers. One of the dark-haired twins moved suddenly, swatting at something. Anna looked up at them. There was something strange about them all. _Aside from the obvious, _she amended. _Not everyone goes around in the woods playing at Dungeons and Dragons. But these men seem a bit more trained than nerds playing in the woods. The way that that one drew a bow was way more practiced than anyone who shoots as a hobby. He actually knows how to use it as an extension of his body instead of holding it like it's a __foreign object like my ex-boyfriend used to do. There is something...different about them. _

Meanwhile, the three had finished their discussion, whatever it was about, and turned back to her.

"You need to put that around your shoulders to keep warm. Your body will not be responding well to the injury you have," Glorfindel explained. At her expression, he mimed putting it on.

"_You want me to put this on? Why? I'm not cold. It's warm enough right now." _She held it out for him to take back.

"Of all the ridiculous...," muttered Elladan. "Firiel, do as you are bid and put the cloak on!"

"_Just who do you think that you are? _ Anna exploded back at him, anger making a welcome change from fear._ You don't need to be yelling at me because I ended up here instead of going on with my workday. It isn't **my** fault that I am stuck here without having a clue as to where I am or anything that is going on!" _Her voice was nearing hysteria again as the sudden burst of anger subsided almost as quickly. Anna tried to breathe deeply and find some inner peace. It almost worked.

"Elladan," chided Elrohir softly. His brother turned towards him with clenched teeth. Elrohir returned his stare without rancor.

"I shall ride ahead to report to Adar," Elladan ground out after a moment. "Is there aught else I should include?"

Elrohir shook his head.

Glorfindel didn't say anything, only looking reproachfully towards Elladan. Elladan gritted his teeth, determined to ignore any twinges of regret, swung up on his horse and rode off leaving Anna feeling sick in the pit in her stomach.

_Idiot!_ she thought to herself. _Are you trying to get yourself killed? Keep your big mouth shut next time! _

The sound of hoof-beats faded quickly, taking some of the tension with them.

"Now to get her on a horse," Glorfindel ticked off the next task. "And place that cloak on her." He walked over to Anna, who looked up a little warily at his arrival, and held his hand out. She handed him the cloak. He took it and held out his hand again.

"_What do you want, now?" _Anna wondered aloud. Glorfindel stifled his own sigh. Sometimes dealing with young ones was such a difficult process. This one doubly so, magnified by the language and culture barrier.

"Asfaloth," he called, and the horse moved obediently forward. "Though the distance is not far, you will perhaps be more comfortable riding than with me carrying you." He first pointed at her and then smoothly moved his hands towards the horse.

"_I take it that you want me to get on the back of that horse. I suppose that it makes no never mind to you that the only time that I have ever been on a horse was when I was ten. That was a long time ago. And then it was only a pony ride! There is **no way** that I am going to be able to get up on that horse."_ Anna said.

The horse looked to Anna to have grown several inches taller in the last few seconds.

In the end it took a good deal of persuasion on the parts of Glorfindel and Elrohir to get Anna up on Asfaloth and the cloak around her. They finally set off towards Imladris.

The journey itself did not take long. Yet, for various reasons, it seemed an eternity to Anna as she tried to keep her balance and to ignore her leg and ankle jarring with every step. Although the cream worked extremely well, she knew that all the movement wasn't good for it. She reached down and wrapped her fingers as far as she could around it. The swelling was getting worse. She needed to get it up soon.

Glorfindel and Elrohir walked on either side of her, not quite touching her, but close enough that she felt her bubble being slightly invaded. _It's a wonder the horse doesn't step on them,_ she thought, a little uncomfortable with the two strangers. _Wait, weren't there two horses left? Where is the other one? _She twisted slightly to see the other horse following tamely behind them without any sort of lead rope. _Talk __about well-trained, _she thought.

An hour or so passed and they walked in near silence. Every so often her companions would talk to each other in that golden language of theirs for a few sentences and then address what Anna assumed was a question to her. She would shrug her shoulders and they would return to their former quiet walking.

Anna began to sway in the saddle, moaning softly. She felt the horse move under her slightly, trying to balance his load. Her ankle began to throb again; the cream was beginning to wear off. Adonis spoke a few words to the dark one and then left, venturing into the forest. Anna wondered what that was about. The remaining one turned and caught her eyes before he spoke.

"Glorfindel has left to find some athelas. It grows profusely in these parts, so he should not be gone long. Be comforted that he must surely return soon," Elrohir tried to encourage her.

Anna shrugged; she still had no clue what they said.

She realized that the adrenalin wasn't pumping as profusely as before. It left her feeling extraordinarily tired and doubled her pain. She just wanted an end to the misery.

Briefly, a thought occurred to her that there was only one now. _Maybe I would be able to escape._ She dismissed that thought almost as soon as it had surfaced._ Who am I kidding? How far would I get? Only as far as the ground before he would be doing anything. And this horse isn't obeying any commands that I give it! Not that I know anything about riding,_ she amended. There was no way that she was going anywhere with her leg banged up the way that it was. A one on one fight didn't appeal to her either. He would win, hands down. _And, besides, where would I go?_

Elrohir walked alongside her for a time. At length he spoke, to break the oppressive silence and to distract her from the pain that she seemed to be feeling once again. Following Glorfindel's example, he started to talk to her of trivial things, not expecting an answer.

"Do you hear the birdsong?" he asked as the sweet notes wafted through the trees. "It is a nightingale. They are the summoners of the evening." He paused for a moment, pointing in the general direction the song had come. The woman gave no response. "We near Imladris," he pressed on in Sindarin. "Soon you will be able to find rest and we shall be able to better care for your injury."

Anna perked up a little. Had he just said Imladris? _"Imladris,"_ she asked. _"Is that an actual place? Rudy said something about the Master of Imladris."_

A response other than pain or fear. Elrohir felt proud of his progress. "Yes, Imladris is the place to which we journey. If this short trip could actually be called by such a long name," he added, smiling.

"_Rudy said something about giving this ring to the Master of Imladris," _ she said again, showing him the ring.

Elrohir looked at her while keeping pace with the horse. "How did you get that ring?" he asked, pointing to it.

"_What do you want to know? It is just a ring that Rudy, one of our residents, gave it to me this morning. Though it is late afternoon, now."_ She was missing a few hours between the morning when she left and the late afternoon when she arrived...wherever she was. That discrepancy she jogged around in favor of finding someone to blame.

_Rudy. _ Anna's pain-fogged mind tried to wrap itself around the idea that possibly, just possibly, Rudy had sent her through space and time (she assumed) to land somewhere in the midst of the wilderness at the mercy of beings that she only assumed were human to deliver a ring to the "Master of Imladris." Full of righteous indignation, she would not show any mercy to Rudy if she ever saw him again. _That lousy rotter! I don't care if he is one-legged old man! If I ever see him again, I'll...I'll...do something drastic!_

Elrohir watched the emotions tripping across her face and landing in the midst of anger. Why had the mention of Imladris caused such a reaction? It troubled him. It suddenly struck him that they hadn't told her any of their names as a natural precaution. Surely the mention of their destination should fall into that same category. _Not the most intelligent thing you have done, Elrohir,_ he thought ruefully.

Undisguised movement to Anna's left heralded Glorfindel's return. Great. Now she was surrounded again.

"Fíriel, here is a plant which we call athelas. Take it between your hands and crush it between your palms." He proceeded to show her with a leaf. "Inhale the fragrance and you will be somewhat refreshed for a time." He held out his open hand, a new leaf waiting for her to take it.

_Is he kidding? _Anna thought. She could already smell the one that he had already bruised. The actions seemed simple enough, and it did smell...wholesome. _Almost like mint._ Hesitantly, she took the leaf and mangled it in her hands. _Whoa. That was some strong stuff, _she thought as the scent rose up towards her. Already, she felt less tired. The pain began to subside to a bearable ache. _If only the health food stores could get a hold of this._ In the back of her mind she hoped that it actually **was** an herbal remedy and not an illicit drug that they were trying to dope her up with. Her experience with either wasn't enough for her to draw any sort of definite conclusion.

They continued traveling. Anna found that she could take a little more interest in her surroundings than previously. They traveled through mostly coniferous forest, though there was a generous amount of deciduous trees mixed in. She wasn't quite sure what there was; the trees could have been oak or fir, beech, spruce or quaking aspen for all that she knew. They seemed to be in a deep valley, for every so often she glimpsed gentle cliffs, if cliffs could be termed gentle, and the land itself that they walked on rose and fell in ridges and ravines.

The golden-haired one, Adonis, started to softly hum a tune unfamiliar to Anna.

They came out of the woods near dusk, the sun setting behind them. Ahead of her was an unusual structure to Anna's city-trained eyes. Lights shone cheerfully from the windows.

Anna assumed that it was Imladris.

She hoped that there was a bathroom—and a hospital with an x-ray machine, stuff for a cast, and a whole lot of Tylenol 3 behind.

**/\\/\\/\\**

**Copious Amounts of Ill-Organized Author's Notes: **

*In regards to the timeline and the naming of the horse Asfaloth. Firstly, I really rather like the name. Secondly, there are two ways that you can choose to interpret this: 1) either he had a horse over a thousand years before of the same name, with multitudes of horses in between of different names, or 2) every horse he has ever owned has the same name—it is not beyond the realm of possibility, I have an uncle and aunt that every dog they have had has been named the same name. So, I leave it to you, gentle reader, to decide which theory works best for you. (Unless you have a completely different theory, in which case I would be interested in hearing it.)

*The cloak is based on a Moroccan burnoose, a hooded, half circle or circle cloak that is sometimes sewn a little below the neck rather than having a clasp.

*It was brought to my attention that not all know the meaning of coniferous and deciduous trees. To put it succinctly (and let my inner teacher out): coniferous trees keep their leaves or needles all year round (fir, spruce) and deciduous trees lose their leaves every autumn and regrow them in the spring (oak, beech, quaking aspen).

*Anna is technically a Certified Nurse Assistant, which means that she does all the grunt work that nurses used to do in Florence Nightingale's time, but she cannot distribute medications (at least last time I checked).

*Be patient with Elladan's temper. I placed it specifically in this time period for many reasons, one of which being that I find it much more believable to have a younger elf losing his temper rather than an older one. He and Elrohir are only about 111.

*Imladris = Rivendell. Imladris is the Sindarin name for it; Rivendell is the Westron translation of Karningul into English. (Found in Appendix F, On Translation) There could certainly be a discussion as to whether or not it was called Rivendell at this time or if that name came later. For the sake of my story, I am assuming that the name Imladris would still be in use among Sindarin speakers.

Firiel - Human maiden

Gi suilon - I greet you (informal Sindarin)

(All of my Elvish words come from the website Merin Essi ar Quenteli! So all credit for correctness goes to them.)

And finally, last but not least, I do enjoy reviews. Feel free to comment. I am trying to keep it within book canon as much as possible, given the AU of having someone dropped into M-e at such a time.

By the way, Arwen is born this year...

**/\\/\\/\\**

_Anon Y. Mous _- Thank you for your kind words. I agree that so few authors have a reason for characters to be dropped into Middle-earth and I rather had fun figuring it out. I came across that comment from Gandalf about lesser rings and I thought to myself...hmmm. I had already started a girl-drops-into-Middle-earth story and this was the perfect lead-in.


	4. Chapter 4

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks to my Betas: chisscientist and LadyJ.**

**/\\/\\/\\**

_The use of your waste facilities were strangely absent from the historical documents, so we had to extrapolate purely on the basis of your anatomy. You're quite complicated, sir._

-Galaxy Quest (deleted scene)

OR

_Is there an elvish word for bathroom?_

-Alfirineth

**/\\/\\/\\**

As Elladan left his companions behind, the tame forested slopes of his father's valley passed by him unnoticed in a familiar blur while Aldon's hoof beats matched the rhythm of his heart. All else fell away and he lost himself in that oneness of horse and rider.

All too soon, he came to the more inhabited parts of the valley and forced himself to slow, lest he run down some unsuspecting child. Now his thoughts pushed themselves around in circles. _Where __**is**__ Alcarnarmo? Why didn't he return? Who is this strange mortal woman? Why does she have my ring? The ring that Alcarnarmo took from me!_ He could find no answer. The blast of anger that he had felt earlier had dulled somewhat; now he was troubled and brooding.

Elladan arrived at the stables and led his horse down the stable's clean paths. Inhaling the aroma that was unique to a horse stable comforted him; here was a place of peace. He grabbed a brush from the hook on the tack wall before entering Aldon's stall.

Elladan decided that he needed to order his thoughts. He proceeded to take the saddle and underlying blanket off Aldon as he started a mental list.

_Firstly,_ he thought,_ Alcarnarmo took my ring last spring and disappeared. This can hardly be contested since I witnessed the disappearance but was too slow to catch him. _Elladan began to vigorously brush down his horse, reliving the occasion as Alcarnarmo, once a dear friend nearly as close as a brother, put Elladan's ring on and walked through a portal to no one knew where. Why hadn't he heeded the advice of his father? His father had seen what he had not.

_Secondly, _Elladan continued as he absently brushed his horse in even strokes, _Alcarnarmo, alas,__ has not returned. This woman is here instead. Why is she here? Has she taken the ring from Alcarnarmo? Is she a thief?_ Elladan paused a moment and Aldon brought his head around and blew at him.

"Goheno nin, my friend, I am sorry. My mind wanders farther than it should," said Elladan. "And I have yet to come to any satisfactory answers." Aldon snuffled at him again while he finished brushing him down.

"Patience. I will get some grain for you," Elladan said affectionately as he carried everything out of the stall, shutting the gate behind him.

_The woman did not seem to want to be here. _He left the saddle and tack by his assigned space then got a bucket of grain and headed back._ Or she was not expecting to have the welcome that she received._ _Was she even expecting to come here? _he wondered.

"No," he said aloud to his horse, forgetting momentarily that others could be listening, "I do not think that she is here by accident." He caught himself after this comment and continued to reason silently in his mind. _Now the question is how did she get here? If she didn't steal the ring, then Alcarnamo must have given it to her and set up the portal himself. _That idea woke a hundred unclear alternatives that hovered just beyond his grasp. Elladan cleaned the tack quickly and put it away in the space just across from the stall while Aldon finished the grain.

"Come, Aldon," said Elladan, "You need to get out to pasture and I need to report to my father ere more time passes." So saying, he opened the gate and Aldon followed obediently down the stable aisle and out into the late afternoon sunshine.

**/\\/\\/\\**

Elladan found his parents sitting companionably on the veranda of their private garden. The sounds of late summer enveloped him and despite himself, Elladan found himself relaxing a little into the familiar family moment. Many was the evening that he had spent with his parents and brother here. He did not linger long in these thoughts, but walked purposefully up the path. He had delayed long enough as it was.

Celebrian, heavy with his new brother or sister, laughed gaily at something that his father had said. Elrond, smiling also, looked up and beckoned as he saw Elladan. The smile softened a bit when he saw his son's face so tangled with emotions.

"You seem troubled, my son," said Elrond.

"Come, sit with us a while," added Celebrian as Elladan came up the few steps and first greeted his mother and then his father. He stayed standing, however.

"Father," he started, "Alcarnarmo broke faith and did not appear. A human woman, strange to our eyes, has arrived and fled from us, injuring her ankle in the process." Elladan tried to ignore his parents raised eyebrows as he recited his prepared statement.

"A human woman?" asked Celebrian, startled.

"I believe she is from the land where the _coward_," Elladan ground the word out like rocks, "has dwelt, for she is clad strangely and does not acknowledge any common language."

"Those are harsh words for a friend," said his father, "but not wholly unwarranted.

"I call him friend no longer," spat Elladan.

There was silence for a space.

"I am sorry that I did not heed your counsel," Elladan continued at last with a more moderate tone. "We could have been saved many trials if I had not been so headstrong."

"No more sorry than I," answered his father gently. "It can be difficult to endure such betrayals. However, there are many things that may happen now that have not been foreseen."

"That I know," Elladan stated. "I know also that I must accept responsibility." He added the last part almost reflexively, not knowing to what extent that duty might take him, but knowing that he must do so.

"It is well to do so," said Celebrian softly. "But where are your brother and Glorfindel now?"

"I confess," he hesitantly started, "that I felt it necessary to remove myself from the immediate vicinity. The process of getting her here was a little more arduous than I could...safely...be involved in." As Elrond took a breath to speak, Elladan quickly added, "I know it does not bode well that I did not stay, for all that I claim...that I," he trailed off and looked at the ground. He felt his failure most acutely.

Elrond checked his intended comment and paused for a moment. "Sometimes it is best to remove ourselves from that which angers for a time. Then, when we have regained our calm, we find ourselves wiser when we return," he said.

Elladan nodded his head slightly in acknowledgment before continuing, "I expect them to arrive before dark. What would you have me do when they arrive?"

"What do you think you should do?" queried Elrond. Sometimes Elladan hated it when his father spoke like that. A part of him wished for those days when he was able to run to his parents and have them guide him more overtly through difficult decisions. Nonetheless, his father's question was not unexpected and Elladan had at least a partial answer.

"I believe that I need to try to understand what has happened and why Alcarnarmo is not here. Why this human woman is here instead. Is she an enemy? Did she take my ring from Alcarnarmo by force? Or did he give it to her? What kind place is she from? Where did Alcarnarmo disappear to in the first place?"

"All are important questions."

"But even more crucially, how do I speak with her? She is wholly without a means of communicating and I fear...," Elladan trailed off.

"What do you fear?" asked his father.

"I do not know."

"Do you believe that she is a danger to Imladris?"

"Glorfindel does not believe so," said Elladan looking away.

Elrond and Celebrian read much into their son's movement. There was more to what had happened that Elladan had chosen not to share. "But you do not," Celebrian stated for both of them.

"I do not know what to think. I am still very angry. Alcarnarmo betrayed my trust and I had hoped to confront him today. To so suddenly be faced with such an unexpected person was..." Elladan searched for the right word and couldn't seem to find it. It seemed to be an unpleasantly common practice this night. He lapsed back into silence.

The cicadas song filled the silence as the sun continued its westward journey.

"How severe is her injury?" Elrond asked, directing the conversation elsewhere.

"Glorfindel is not concerned. It is either a sprain or a minor break, but with proper care should heal well."

"We shall see her when she arrives then," said Elrond. "But in the meantime, how do you plan to welcome her?"

**/\\/\\/\\**

Anna's arrival into Imladris went relatively unnoticed for few people walked abroad at the dinner hour. Thus, there were only two people witness to the occasion. Elladan and an elleth, Gilorneth by name, waited for them. They walked out to meet them, Gilorneth a half step behind Elladan.

"Long journey?" asked Elladan, without rancor.

Elrohir relaxed a little. He had been hoping that his brother would have had enough time to cool his temper. "The journey was just as long as it usually is, Elladan," he retorted.

"That is well. Master Elrond and the Lady Celebrian are currently overseeing the evening meal. I am here in their stead," Elladan said formally. "My father would like to speak to you at your convenience, Glorfindel."

Glorfindel nodded acknowledgment as Elladan walked up towards Anna. "Welcome to Imladris," Elladan said to her and held out his hands to help her dismount.

Anna shrank back. This one was the crazy one with the bow. No way was she going to trust herself in his hands.

Elladan dropped his hands and gave a slight nod to her rejection. He supposed he could understand it, though he still felt wholly justified in his earlier actions. "As you wish," was all he said.

Gilorneth wondered what had happened to prompt such a reaction, but quickly stifled her curiosity. It was not good for apprentice healers to wonder about personal affairs; it could lead to too many other problems.

Feeling pity for all involved in the awkward situation, Glorfindel, still standing close to Anna's other side, held his hands up in a similar gesture. Without hesitation, Anna reached out to him and was lifted gently and effortlessly to the ground. As soon as her good foot touched the ground, her muscles gave way and she almost folded. Glorfindel held her steady until Gilorneth came up and took Anna's other arm around her shoulders and placed her own arm around Anna's waist.

Elladan stood by, face impassive, but feeling useless until the obvious struck him. "Glorfindel," he said, trying vainly to keep the shreds of his dignity around him. "Gilorneth knows which room is prepared and can guide you. Lerina will meet you shortly. In the meantime, would you allow me to care for Asfaloth while you help her?" Generally, each elf cared solely for his own riding horse. Only in certain situations (that were few) did someone else take on that care. Few present missed the awkwardness of the situation.

"That would be well," Glorfindel said, taking mercy on Elladan's obvious discomfort. "Asfaloth, follow Elladan." Asfaloth obediently came up towards Elladan who in turn left the trio standing and walked with his twin towards the stables with both horses trailing obediently behind them.

"Meluithel took Therion home early from dinner," Elladan said to Elrohir as they walked away.

"Did he start throwing food again?" Elrohir asked, chuckling.

"I know not,"Elladan said, "But you missed a marvelous tantrum as he was being escorted out by his mother."

"I can imagine," said Elrohir. "Hopefully, Meluithel will have him in bed by the time I return home—then I can wake him up to kiss him good-night," he added wickedly.

"I thought you wanted to stay on good terms with your wife?" asked Elladan.

"You are right," said Elrohir, feigning regret. "That would be not be wise, for I would be the one staying up with him until he fell asleep again."

"To everything there is a price," quoted Elladan as they both entered the stables.

**/\\/\\/\\**

Meanwhile, Glorfindel and Gilorneth led Anna into the Last Homely House. Now that she was off of the horse and standing (albeit supported), Anna realized that her need was much more intense than before. Nature was not calling; it was trying to beat down the door. Despite this, Anna tried not to do the one-legged potty dance as she hopped along between them for she felt rather embarrassed about the whole thing. After a brief internal power struggle, common sense took over and shoved embarrassment out of the proverbial window. _What more do I have to lose? _she thought.

_ A lot, _the other part of her mind responded. _Don't you remember any of the prisoner of war __stuff that you read in college? _

_ With one great exception, I have been treated with respect,_ the other side argued. _ Even when I freaked out. I don't think that these people are evil._

_They could be lulling you into a false sense of security! _came the response.

_I don't get that feeling around them__, _declared the first half.

_There you go on about feelings, _mocked the second half.

_Those feelings have gotten us out of more trouble than you care to acknowledge, _stated the first half with finality. _So stuff it! Everything is going to be fine. _

_ More feelings,_ muttered #2, intent on getting the last word. The bulk of Anna ignored that last comment and proceeded to try to communicate the need for facilities. It would have been comical if her perceived circumstances weren't so dire.

Gilorneth, long used to understanding toddlers, for she had many nieces and nephews, knew the privy dance. For himself, Glorfindel hadn't had three children for nothing. Without hesitation and of one accord, they altered their trajectory.

"After we stop at the privy," said Gilorneth as they walked to their common goal. "Elladan wants us to take her to the blue room in the healing wing."

**/\\/\\/\\**

When Anna and her dark haired crutch left Adonis outside, Anna's hopes rose. _Yay! This probably means a bathroom!_ she celebrated. Then they rounded a corner and Anna got a good look at the facilities and her excitement fizzled out like a firework sinking into a swamp.

They were in a long room with several small windows placed high along the walls that let in both light and the sounds from the outside, though now the light was dim. To compensate for this, lit lanterns hung from the ceiling at regular intervals down the center of the room. Their gentle light showed a walkway on either side of a low wall that ran down the center of the room. As she drew closer, Anna noticed that the wall had a smooth, stone trough in it and a downward facing outlet against the far wall from which the water flowed gently into the...fountain?...sink?...and there was a drain at the other end to prevent it from overflowing. Apart from this fixture, along both sides of the room were benches with keyhole shaped holes spaced about two and a half feet apart all the way down their length.

_ "You have got to be kidding me!" _ Anna exclaimed aloud, staring aghast at the toilets, for toilets they surely must be. A row of toilets on either side of the room with no stalls, no doors, no locks, and no privacy. Her breath started coming in short gasps unrelated to her fatigue and pain and she suddenly felt like crying again. _Is nothing sacred? _

Anna tried to console herself by thinking that at least it was a woman that was helping her to the bathroom. It could have been Adonis that helped her instead—now that would have been truly mortifying. Six feet of attractive and muscular male helping her in the very public restroom. Her face went crimson at the thought.

Anna struggled valiantly to shove all those feelings down and get it over with. She had never needed help like this before, and despite helping so many do the exact same in her previous occupation, she found it difficult to be on the receiving end of personal care.

_ "How exactly do I do this, here?" _she asked her attendant. The woman looked a little confused at her words, but seemed at last to understand the intent behind them. She helped Anna limp over toward the wooden toilet bench. "_So unsanitary! Yuck, yuck, yuck!"_ Her skin started to crawl just thinking about it. "_Nasty!"_ She hated public toilets. What she wouldn't do for some sort of sanitizing agent to spray on it before she had to sit down.

She caught the sound of running water from within the toilet bench itself. Looking down, she caught glimpses of water running in a stream under the bench. "_At least they have a form of running water, even if it isn't a flushing toilet," _she said_. "I hope that they just don't channel it straight back __out to the river!"_

Gilorneth took no real notice of the personal dialogue that Anna was keeping up. Her job was just to help this poor unfortunate human who had no apparent regard for the cleanliness of elves. It's not as if they were dwarfs!

In the end, both Anna and Gilorneth made it out of the privy in one piece and with only the minimum of embarrassment for both parties.

It was also in here, as Gilorneth helped her up and down, that Anna got her first close look at the trademark elven ears. However, she attributed it to the poor lighting and possible genetic defect and promptly dismissed it.

**/\\/\\/\\**

**Anon** – Thanks for leaving a review! Being a long-time lurker myself before starting to write, it is good to hear from those reading even if they don't have an account.


	5. Chapter 5

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks to my Betas: chisscientist and LadyJ.**

**/\\/\\/\\**

_Do not let your hearts be troubled. Tonight you shall sleep in peace._

The Mirror of Galadriel, The Fellowship of the Ring

**/\\/\\/\\**

The sun had set, leaving the world drenched in a fast-fading twilight. The sound of frogs and insects rose around Anna and her escort/crutches as they finally headed into the main building.

The trio worked their way through a short maze of hallways and rooms that Anna didn't really pay attention to. They were stopped once by a blond woman who took the place of Gilorneth at Anna's side. Gilorneth was then sent on an errand of some sort. After this brief exchange they continued on.

Anna had wondered vaguely what they were saying, but then ignored them both in favor of the mental exercise of walking without groaning, or perhaps more appropriately, supporting her weight with one leg while leaning heavily on Adonis and the new girl (who, despite the torchlight, had the clear complexion that Anna had always dreamed of). Eventually they got to wherever they were going, which hopefully had someplace to sit that wasn't on the back of an animal, docile as that horse had been.

Anna looked up from watching her feet as they entered through doorway and only kept moving because her two living crutches kept her going. _Seriously, what is my problem? It's only a snapped ankle! s_he thought, disgusted with herself. _But add to that __s__hock, fatigue and a horse ride, oh, and did I mention that I have no idea where this place is?_ _Stop panicking! Isn't that getting a little old? You been 'here' what, like a couple of hours? That is enough time to adjust. _The last was such a blatant falsehood that Anna didn't even try to convince herself that she should be adjusted. Instead it she replaced it with: _breathe, girl, just breathe. One thing at a time. You can handle this. _

To keep her mind from spiraling down into depths that she didn't want to sound, she looked around. It was a beautifully comfortable room. Despite the fact that she felt safe around Adonis, she had really rather expected the usual captive fare; a small dank cell complete with rats and no medical attention. In retrospect, there wasn't anything that the strangers had done to warrant such gloomy expectations—except that one with the twitchy trigger finger—but nonetheless, she found herself surprised with the dignity that they had treated her with.

Drapes hung along part of the far wall, the color looking very dark in the lamplight. A fire immediately to her left added comfort and just the right amount of warmth. Anna hadn't realized how grateful she was for the cloak until she felt the heat in the room.

A bed and cupboards, also on her left, stood with the foot of the bed towards the middle of the room and the cupboards closer to the drapes. On her right was a table between two chairs. On the table was a ceramic pitcher sitting in a matching bowl and an oil lamp, rather like the old kerosene lamp her grandmother had kept in her kitchen for emergencies.

It was to one of the chairs that the trio headed, finally depositing Anna into one of them. Lerina hooked a convenient stool with her foot and swung it around while Glorfindel gently picked up her leg to have it rest thereon.

Lerina turned to her father. "I'll send a message with Gilorneth when we finish."

"That is well," said Glorfindel. "See if you can learn her name. She did not tell us when we first found her—but that could be for many reasons. She has been here only a few hours and perhaps you will be less threatening." He then smiled at Anna. "I will return shortly."

Anna watched him turn and walk out of the room. She had wanted to grab hold of his hand and tell him not to leave her with these strangers! He was kind and at least a little known to her.

But she did not.

The blond woman disrupted Anna's thoughts by stepping in front of her. She gestured first to herself and then to Anna. "Im Lerina. Man i eneth lîn?"

Anna looked up questioningly and pointed to herself. Lerina repeated the question, "What is your name?"

Anna licked her lips and croaked out an answer. _"Anna."_

"Ahnnah."

_"Anna. A like apple. Aaa."_

Lerina tried again. "Anna."

_"That's right. Anna. Say, how come you are the first to ask me my name?"_ asked Anna. Lerina tilted her head to one side questioningly. Anna waved at her to forget the question.

"Lerina," she said pointing to herself. It had been a long time since she had had difficulty understanding or being understood. It would take a little time and patience for her to adjust to the communication barrier.

_"Lerina."_ _Such a flowing name, _thought Anna as she in turn had her pronunciation corrected. She repeated it a few times to imprint it in her memory. She also filed her question away for later (which meant that it probably would go unanswered for the time that she was here if this language barrier kept up for any length of time).

Lerina moved toward the table and grabbed a cup and filled it with water from the pitcher, bringing it back over and offering it to Anna. Anna took it gratefully and fingered the smoothness of the cup after she had emptied it.

"Do you want more," asked Lerina holding her hand out. Anna wordlessly handed the cup back and Lerina filled it and handed it back again.

"I have sent Gilorneth for washing water and a message for a meal to be brought," Lerina said while gathering things from around the room. She continued to keep up a gentle one-sided conversation until Gilorneth finally arrived, holding a larger basin in both hands with a towel draped over one shoulder. She set the basin down on the table, then went back and shut the door. Suddenly, Anna recognized the process. _Looks like I am getting a sponge bath. Yay, _she thought, without excitement. Her deductions were reinforced when Lerina took the top cloth and whipped it open to show a wide, shapeless nightgown with a gathered neck and long sleeves and started talking to her.

"Anna," said Lerina, "here are your sleeping clothes. I can see that you are rather unimpressed by it. Nonetheless, it will be an improvement to the stained clothing that you are currently in. Now, would you like to refresh yourself a little before changing? I regret that you will not be able to take a full bath tonight, but I assure you that that will not always be the way of things."

Anna decided to take at least this small matter into her own hands. They weren't stripping her themselves, always a good sign, and she was feeling rather caked with dirt, horse and greenery. She took the small cloth that was in the water, wrung it out, and scrubbed on exposed skin, starting with her face and arms. Since the two showed no signs of leaving, Anna held a hand out for the nightgown.

Once Anna had exchanged her top for the nightgown, the two women came forward and helped support her while she tried to get her scrub bottoms off. Once finished, she sat down again, a little winded with her ankle throbbing even worse from standing up.

Gilorneth took this moment to grab the washrag, kneel down at Anna's feet and start to gently wash her legs, unwrapping the bandage on the ankle and foot. Lerina set the cool water steeped with athelas on a low stool and gently placed Anna's injured foot in it and left it there for several minutes.

Gilorneth bundled up Anna's dirty clothes and then walked out of the door only to hold it open with her foot while another woman brought in a tray with Anna's meal.

_"Persephone's pomegranate bound her to Hades and the underworld," _she said aloud._ "Will food here do the same?"_ She wasn't really serious, but then again, many strange things had happened to her today. What were the rules here?

"The food is safe, Anna," said Lerina, noticing her reticence. After another moment of waiting, Lerina mimed eating.

"_Well, I've already drunk the water. What is the harm in eating now?"_ Anna tentatively tried the food. While vastly different from what she was used to, it wasn't absolutely disgusting. She put her parents teaching into effect. Try everything, and don't make faces while eating. It had served her well these long years.

Her parents... Her family... Would she ever see them again? She nearly choked at the thought and the food turned to dust in her mouth.

Better to not think about that right now. She focused on chewing and swallowing. No need to break into tears now.

After a while, a brief knock came to the door. "Enter," said Lerina.

Elrond came in holding a mug of some steaming liquid which he handed to Anna, gesturing for her to drink. Glorfindel followed after a few beats later, carrying some other supplies in a basket and then shutting the door.

As Elrond settled himself on another stool next to her, Anna decided that she liked the new arrival. He exuded the same sort of peace that Adonis did. He spoke some gentle words to her while gesturing towards her ankle. She nodded that he could look (she guessed that he was the doctor) and he began to examine her leg and ankle while it was still soaking.

There was already some bruising evident, and the swelling was severe, but not the worst that Elrond had ever seen. He gently felt around the bones as much as he was able; no breaks were immediately evident and Glorfindel had already corrected the dislocation when he had first bandaged her ankle. Given time and the proper treatment, he felt confident that she should heal well with no lasting damage—provided that she responded the same way as the other humans that he had tended before.

Elrond took her leg out of the water and proceeded to re-wrap the ankle, first applying a strong-smelling liniment from a jar that Glorfindel provided. Then he wrapped it in a broad bandage and then placed a more sturdy splint than the initial trimmed stick around her heel and wrapped it with more linen. Securing it deftly with a knot, he looked up and smiled at Anna.

Anna watched this whole process with a certain fascination and a little dread, truth be told. From what she'd seen of the place, she was sure that it didn't house any sort of modern medical equipment. X-rays and plaster of paris were a thing of her past, apparently. But whatever he had given her was working well. Her pain level had dropped significantly. Suddenly, she realized that she was very tired.

"We will certainly meet again in the morning, but now you seem tired and in need of rest," he said kindly. "Be assured that no harm will come to you in this house." Elrond stood and he and Glorfindel walked out of the room, shutting the door behind them.

Elladan, who had been waiting down the hall, came forward towards his father and Glorfindel.

"There is no immediate danger in her. She is lost and confused and angry about it, but certainly not a danger that we cannot handle," Elrond said quietly to Glorfindel and Elladan. "I think it would be best if you and your daughter watched over her this night." This last remark was directed solely at Glorfindel.

"I agree. If anything untoward happens, I will send word."

"Tomorrow morning, Celebrian and I shall formally greet her."

"It shall be done," said Glorfindel and turned to take his leave of Elrond.

"Glorfindel," started Elladan and then did not know what to say. The formal apology that he had prepared left him. "I apologize for my rudeness earlier," he finally managed.

Glorfindel's eyes softened and he put his hand on Elladan's shoulder. "It takes a strong person to acknowledge a wrong-doing. I thank you for your apology." Then he left, heading back towards Anna's room while Elrond and Elladan went the other way, talking of other things.

**/\\/\\/\\**

After the two elves had left, Lerina helped Anna into the bed and then sat quietly in the chair until her father returned.

Anna, a bit surprised at having someone stay in the room with her, _Don't these people have anything else to do?_ found that she was too tired to care. She rolled over, finally giving in fully to the sense of security brought on by their kindness and the drugged tea, and fell into a deep, untroubled sleep before Glorfindel returned.


	6. Chapter 6

**Thanks to my betas: chisscientist and iamyourangel12**

**Random Poll: Do you consider this an adventure story or something different?**

**/\\/\\/\\**

_Great events, we often find, _

_On little things depend, _

_And very small beginnings _

_Have oft a mighty end._

Excerpt from "The Power of Littles"

by Anonymous

**/\\/\\/\\**

The morning dawned bright and clear. Even inside Anna's room, despite the crackling of the small fire, the calls of the geese heading south sounded clearly. It comforted Anna, who looked towards the window Lerina had just uncovered. Perhaps this place was not as alien as her first instincts had told her. _There are geese and curtains. What more could I want?_ Anna thought acerbically.

After judging that Anna was fit enough to walk assisted to the Hall of Fire to be officially greeted, Glorfindel left, leaving her in Lerina's care for the morning necessities. A visit to the local chamber pot, conveniently stored in her very own room, started the procedure. It was followed by a brief scrub down of hands and face with warmish water, a rewrap of her ankle, and then the process of getting dressed.

At Anna's waist, Lerina tied loose drawstring leggings that fit under everything else—they reminded Anna of her own scrub pants, but they felt indescribably different. Lerina then helped Anna into a long, loose dress that fell almost to her ankles. Neither rough nor smooth, she found the fabric comfortable despite its unfamiliarity. This was followed by another dress of similar cut, save that there were lacings up both sides, allowing for it to be drawn up somewhat. Over this was wrapped a dark red sash that wrapped twice around her waist before being tied and allowed to fall almost to her knees.

Once she was dressed, Lerina sat her in one of the chairs with her foot up on the stool. Then she somehow convinced Lerina that she really did need her sneakers. Well, one sneaker, properly tied, the other loosened as much as possible and slipped over the bandage. It was a tad uncomfortable, but not unbearable. She really didn't want to lose her sneakers after having lost most of her other clothes to who-knows-where overnight. She only had all of her underthings because she refused to be parted from them.

"Am I going somewhere?" Anna asked when Lerina wielded the comb and worked it gently through Anna's hair. "You really don't have to do all of this. I am capable of brushing my own hair." It was mostly just a reflexive statement. Anna didn't even bother moving her hand to intercept the comb and take over. She had forgotten how nice it felt to have someone else brush her hair. It had been a long time since the last time that she had had that opportunity. Plus, she was more tired than she should be after the process of dressing. Perhaps she would just rest for a moment and enjoy it. Lerina was seemed nice enough, even if Anna didn't understand a word that she was saying right now.

Lerina finished combing out Anna's hair and rubbed a little bit of sweet-smelling oil through it, and then proceeded to brush it again. So Anna took the time to think. Her ankle had not troubled her all night. That in itself was surprising. As she woke in the morning and took stock, there was a dull background ache that rested through the entire area—so background that she had hoped that it was just a minor turned ankle that had just taken a little bit longer to heal than usual. Until she tried to put her weight on it when she got out of bed. Piercing pain had shot through her ankle and leg and she had nearly fallen. Lerina had been quick and caught her before she tumbled completely to the floor, but it had been close.

Lerina had finished confining her hair in what felt like braids. There was no mirror available, so Anna had to suffice feeling her hair softly with her hands. It felt beautiful. Far fancier than when she and her friends would braid each others hair at camp or at sleepovers. And far more ornate than was her usual wont. Apparently ponytails were not allowed.

**/\\/\\/\\**

Anna limped to a spacious hall with seating scattered along the walls with two occupied nearly throne-like seats dominating the far end. There was a cluster of seats around them, some occupied and some empty. I_s this a monarchy? _she wondered. _Am I to be welcomed by the king? _Having grown up in America and having read a great deal of world history, she really didn't think much of kings or other absolute rulers, regardless of their titles. _Absolute power corrupts absolutely._ That's what the saying was. She hoped that if she was indeed going to meet an absolute ruler that he or she would have a kindly disposition.

Her apprehension escalated. She didn't know what the social mores of this society was. What was the status of a single woman, such as she? Was she automatically considered property as in so many ancient and not-so-ancient societies? Was she already a slave? She really didn't think that she was going to be a slave in the brutal sense, especially considering her treatment over the past twenty-four hours, but that didn't stop her nerves from jangling terribly. You never knew, after all. The wicked witch and her house of candy from Hansel and Gretel suddenly popped into her mind. Things weren't always what they seemed.

_In. Out. One step at a time, _Anna thought._ This calming technique seems to be working better with more practice. _

Glorfindel and Lerina, who walked beside her, noticed her mounting tension and slowing pace. They encouraged her on with soft words and smiles, but were still concerned. Perhaps they had brought her out too soon. But on the other hand, it was something that still needed to be done. And her physical wounds, at least, were not grievous.

At long last, Anna approached the dais upon which the high seats were. She stood there, trembling slightly with nerves and looked up at the two that were in the seats. Glorfindel and Lerina stood a half step behind her at either side, there to support if necessary, but still enabling her to stand alone, supported by crutches.

Anna suddenly noticed the twins from yesterday sitting close to the couple in the thrones. There was a strong family resemblance between them and the couple on the throne. _Oh, dear, sweet mother-of-pearl, _thought Anna, _Twitchy is related to the ruling class! I am sooo in trouble. _

She returned her gaze up at those immediately on the dais, noticing a couple of key points that brought them down to a more human level. First, it was the same man (she recalculated the term doctor to ruler) that had cared for her ankle so kindly the night before. He still had that kind demeanor, a veritable aura of wholesomeness around him, despite the ceremonial clothing that he wore. He seemed to have a steadying influence on her, because she suddenly felt more at ease.

Anna turned her attention to the woman, who, while beautifully kind and gleaming from some sort of psychological inner light that Anna really couldn't describe, was very pregnant. Now that was something that Anna understood very well, at least in theory. She had taken enough human biology classes, for crying out loud. And she had been living with her sister and brother-in-law while attending college a few years back when her sister had had twin girls. Her gut suddenly twisted at the memory. Would she ever see any of them again?

She shied away from those thoughts once again. Now was not the time.

"Please, sit." At the woman's gesture, Glorfindel and Lerina helped Anna into a nearby chair. They sat beside her.

"Welcome to Imladris. I am the Master of the Last Homely House and this is my wife, the Lady Celebrian," Elrond gestured lovingly towards his wife who took his hand and smiled at him. "We welcome you to our house."

Imladris. There was that word again. _"Imladris?"_ Anna questioned while pointing to the floor.

"Imladris, yes. This house and the whole valley is Imladris," affirmed Elrond as he motioned broadly.

Suddenly things started falling into place. She remembered the conversation with Rudy—was it only yesterday?:

_**"Be sure to give that ring to the Master of Imladris,"**_Rudy had said.

And_**"The Elves are coming for you today."**_

Anna touched the ring on her finger with her thumb from the same hand. If this truly was Imladris, then the next logical jump would be that the seated man up on the dais was it's Master.

_And they are elves. Real, living, breathing elves. Wait a minute. Aren't elves supposed to have pointy ears? They do in most of the pictures_, Anna thought.

Anna risked being rude and looked around at the examples of ears in the room. Some were covered with hair, but most of the others were obviously apparent. They were slightly pointed, but not enough to draw unnecessary comment if they had walked the streets in her own world. Or time. Whatever.

And there was also the point that all here were thin. Thin, but strong. She remembered how easily Glorfindel had lifted her off of the horse.

_"Elves," _she breathed aloud. _"But not Santa's elves. Are you the Sidhe?"_ Her question went unanswered.

_"Ok. I am here in Imladris," _Anna changed tactics and pointed down and then waved around, waiting for some sign that she was correct before continuing. At their affirmation, she continued, _"and you are the '_Maistair of Imladris'_." _She looked directly at Elrond while stressing the word 'Maistair'.

Elrond nodded. "I am the Master of Imladris." He both affirmed and corrected her.

_"Then according to that rotter, Rudy, I am to give you this ring." _ Anna held up her hand with the ring on her finger. She already knew that it was recognized in this place from conversations yesterday with Twitchy's twin brother. _"And, seeing as I have no reason to keep it, as it wasn't mine in the first place, I will give it to you, as per instructions from Rudy." _Anna said wryly. _"It would have gone directly to the nurse anyway."_ She took the ring off of her finger during this last part and now held it up towards the 'Master of Imladris'. Anna didn't dare any other move towards the dais without express permission, however.

Elrond, surprised at the suddenness of the conversation towards one of the very topics that had needed to be discussed this day, gestured for Elladan, sitting at his right hand, to go and retrieve the ring. Elladan did so, walking slowly and circumspectly in his father's eyes, but still this human woman shrank from him. It was slight, so slight that if he hadn't been looking for it, he wouldn't have seen it, but it was there, nonetheless. A small squeeze from Celebrian let him know that she noticed it, too. They both remembered Elladan's reticence when he had first returned. He wondered what exactly had transpired between his son and this mortal woman. He would look into it.

The strangest feeling of sudden loneliness swept over Anna as she handed the ring over to Twitchy. She couldn't explain it. There was no reason that she knew of for her to feel that way. And yet, she did.

Elladan handed the ring to his father who looked at it briefly before handing it back. He slipped onto his finger.

**/\\/\\/\\**

All were dismissed after a short and mild questioning of Anna. It went quickly and was rather uneventful. The language barrier made itself more apparent the more questions that she asked and was asked and Anna's head began to hurt. But there were no literal spotlights, no thumbscrews, and no other torture devices to help with this questioning. Despite the frustration with not being understood, everyone remained overtly calm.

Afterward, Glorfindel and Lerina took Anna back to her rooms and she welcomed a brief rest.

For the first time in months, Anna slept during the day. She didn't wake until they brought her a supper of more unfamiliar foods of which she ate but little. After that, she tried to go back to sleep and just ignored the world. Lerina cared for her as best as she could, but there is only so much you can do for an unresponsive patient.

_I need to get some more athelas in here, _thought Lerina later._ It should help with these doldrums. _

**/\\/\\/\\**

That afternoon Elladan found his father stooped over weeding in his herb garden. Wordlessly, Elladan joined his father. They worked in silence for a time before either of them spoke.

"She is afraid of you," stated Elrond opting for directness.

Elladan grimaced. "Yes."

"Is there a reason for that?" Elrond asked, quite aware that there was.

"Yes." Elladan drew out the word a little longer than necessary.

Elrond turned expectant eyes on his son.

Elladan focused on a particularly troublesome weed before deciding that now was as good a time as any to unburden his soul.

"I threatened to shoot her when she first arrived," said Elladan tersely, "And to my knowledge, I was the only one to threaten outright violence."

"Ah." That made sense. Elrond offered neither solace nor judgment. He had confidence that Elladan knew how to correct the situation.

The sun fell gently on the garden while more weeds met their doom.

"What else troubles you?" asked Elrond after another bit.

Elladan continued to pull a couple of more weeds before answering. "Father, will you help me destroy this ring?" He held up his hand that wore the ring that Anna had given back that morning to illustrate.

"Have you pondered this fully, son?"

"I have."

"You are determined to go forward with this?"

"I am," he stated firmly. "It is more than just a symbol of a broken trust with Alcarnarmo, now. Past experience has proven it is too dangerous to leave it where mortal hands might acquire it."

Elrond reflected for a moment while continuing his work in the garden. "My heart tells me that there are consequences that are as yet unforeseen from this decision," he said at last.

"There are always consequences from all of our actions," returned Elladan. He pulled at his own weed, the smell of life and the garden all around him. A sudden thought jumped out. "The woman, you mean."

"Yes, in part."

"In part?" Elladan exclaimed.

"There is a heaviness about the choice laid before you that I cannot explain. I urge you to consider all the facets before you hasten onto a path from which there is no easy return."

"Father," Elladan almost sighed in frustration. "What would you have me do? I wish to destroy it. It is too dangerous to leave untended." He sat back on his heels and looked directly at his father. "The woman, if she takes the ring to return to her own country, will not be able to return the ring. So she will keep it and the same course will play out, exactly as before!"

"That...is a possibility."

"You know as well as I that the ring will only transport one person at a time. I cannot take her to her time and place and then return myself. There are no other rings with this particular power, either. If there ever were, they are lost."

"This is also true."

"Will you help me, Adar? I cannot completely destroy it on my own," he dropped his voice to almost a whisper. "The power can only be brought under subjugation and destroyed in connection with the power of one of the great rings."

"Elladan," said Elrond. "My son. You are grown and the ring is under you stewardship. I would urge you to think carefully on it for a time and if at the end of that time you are still determined, I will aid you." He leveled a most serious look at Elladan. "You must be prepared for the consequences."

"I will think on it," said Elladan. "Thank you, Father."

**/\\/\\/\\**

**Note: **Sidhe (pronounced 'shee') literally means "people of the (fairy) hills".

-From the Encyclopedia Mythica.


	7. Chapter 7

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks go to my Betas!**

**/\\/\\/\\**

**Author's Note:**

**I went through the other chapters and edited a little more, again. There is nothing that really changes the overall plot; it was mostly just word choice here and there. Just FYI.**

**I am so sorry that it took so long to update. But yeah. Real life. It is the only excuse that I can offer.**

**/\\/\\/\\**

Never run from anything immortal. It attracts their attention.

The Last Unicorn

Peter S. Beagle

**/\\/\\/\\**

"Glorfindel. Elladan. I am glad you both are here," said Gilorneth, a little breathlessly after hurrying up to them, "The human woman has fled. Lerina follows her to bring her back when she tires, but wishes you both to know." She pointed north. "They headed out past the smithy into the woods beyond before she sent me back."

Glorfindel's face was troubled. "She refused to stay?" he asked.

"No, she did not heed us," Gilorneth grimaced. "Nor did we think it advisable to restrain her."

"Thank you, Gilorneth. You have done well to come to me. You may return to your other duties."

"It seems you have a recalcitrant charge," said Elladan said to Glorfindel after Gilorneth left.

"Charge?" questioned Glorfindel sharply.

"Didn't my father give care of her to you while she recovers?"

"Not at all," returned Glorfindel. "As I recall, she is part of _your_ household. If I choose to befriend her while she is here, I trust that you have no objections?" he said archly as he turned on his heel and strode down the hallway, not waiting for a response.

Elladan grimaced at Glorfindel's turned back. That hadn't been what he had meant to say. What was the matter with him when it came to this woman? He got out of his chair and hurried after Glorfindel.

"May I join you?" Elladan asked.

Glorfindel nodded, but did not reply immediately, his mind already on other things.

"It bodes well that she leaves her room, now," ventured Elladan while keeping pace with the determined stride of his companion.

"Perhaps," said Glorfindel.

"Surely it must be so, since by Lerina's account she has refused to leave her bed these three days past."

Glorfindel answered nothing, but continued towards the smithy. Elladan lapsed into silence and merely kept pace.

"She has not eaten enough to sustain her," Glorfindel said softly to himself. "She shouldn't have gotten far."

In the end, Anna had hobbled farther on her crutches than Glorfindel had given her credit for. They came upon both her and Lerina in the nearby forest, out of sight and nearly out of hearing of the forges.

It was the sound of Anna vomiting behind a bush that finally led them the last few paces. Lerina was crouched next to her, tucking Anna's hair out of the way, rubbing small circles on her back and making soothing sounds.

"How long have you been here?" asked Glorfindel as he and Lerina moved over to Anna.

"A few minutes, no more," answered Lerina distractedly.

Anna finished dry heaving and wiped her mouth with the back of a shaky arm while moving a little to the left, away from the elves. The effort proved too great for her weakened state. She fell over sideways towards the forest floor, sides heaving. Lerina was quicker however, and caught her right arm before she could fall the whole way. Glorfindel moved up quickly behind her, supporting her left side as she lay listlessly in his arms.

"All will be well, little one," Glorfindel said softly to Anna as Lerina relinquished her grip and let her father bear all of Anna's weight. "We need to get her back," he said, looking over at Lerina.

"Yes," she agreed. What more was there to add to such an obvious statement?

"Elladan, come here," Glorfindel directed. "You need to carry her back."

Elladan stood there a little aghast at the prospect. "Surely you jest!"

"Come. Here. Now."

Lerina knew that tone. She'd heard it often enough growing up. _I would __**never **__have gotten away with speaking to my father like that,_ she thought. _He must be letting Elladan get away with it because he is someone else's child. _

Elladan reluctantly came over and squatted next to Glorfindel.

"Carry her back," Glorfindel said, his tone brooking no disobedience.

Elladan moved in and took the human woman from Glorfindel one arm under her shoulders and the other under her knees. _Why is it that humans smell so bad? _he thought, wrinkling his nose. He rose to his feet, grunting a little. _It is so unfair. MY charge? MY household? _He turned towards the house and began striding angrily towards it.

Lerina sighed inwardly. Nothing compared to being in the middle of a confrontation. She better keep up with Elladan and make sure that he didn't hit Anna's head against a tree. She didn't think that he would purposely do such a thing to someone helpless as Anna was, but accidents do happen. She grabbed the crutches and took off after Elladan.

For himself, Glorfindel decided that now was a time to have a discussion with Elrond. After all, Elrond was Elladan's father; it was his role to judge in this matter.

**/\\/\\/\\**

"Mother, may I trouble you for a moment?" Elladan asked his mother, once he'd found her in the weaving room. There were others there, of course, for the room was large, filled with many looms that were constantly being used. There was always a need for fabric at Imladris.

"Of course," Celebrian answered, continuing to weave. After a moment of silence, she glanced at her son. "I feel the need of a walk. I have been sitting here too long," she said as she brought her weaving to a convenient ending spot. "Would you care to join me?"

The statement didn't really need an answer, so he remained silent as he followed his mother outside.

She walked slower now and kept her hand on his arm. He supposed that this was only to be expected as she grew larger and her balance was slightly off with the pregnancy.

Leaving the main house behind, they headed towards the apple orchard. "I have always loved apple trees," Celebrian said.

"I am surprised that it isn't mallorn trees instead," remarked Elladan playfully.

"Mallorns are certainly very beautiful," Celebrian nodded, "but for some reason I have always loved the scent of apples." She half-turned towards him with a gentle smile. "Apple trees or mallorns are not what you want to discuss, however."

"I have a question concerning the human woman," Elladan sighed, deciding to be as direct as his mother just had been.

"What exactly is her place in my household? She is neither a guest nor a servant. She most certainly is not family," he said vehemently. "What is she?"

Celebrian took a moment contemplating her answer. Her initial response was more along the lines of: _Have I failed you as a mother! You are how old and have I not taught you sufficiently?_ She decided that this was probably not the best way to address his immediate question. So she instead tried another tactic.

"Something tells me that you were not fully aware of what you promised," she stated instead, her tone carefully even.

"I promised that I would bear the responsibility for all that transpired since Alcarnarmo took the ring."

"At this time that responsibility, as you call it, includes the care of the human woman."

"Why does she not fall under father's jurisdiction?" Elladan almost whined the question.

"Elladan!" exclaimed Celebrian. "When did you decide to become a child again?"

Elladan murmured a reluctant apology.

"You know very well how the chain of command works in this valley," Celebrian stated.

Elladan nodded. "We all have stewardship over certain things or people and report back to our superior," He muttered. He really did feel more at home with martial terms, something that his mother knew well. It was not lost on him.

They walked in silence for a few steps arm in arm.

"She is like you," said his mother, suddenly.

Shocked for a moment, Elladan stopped walking under an apple tree and uttered a fierce denial. "She is nothing like me!"

"You have human blood in you. There is that same connection between you," Celebrian clarified.

"And you would throw my human blood in my face!" Anger triumphed over reason until he registered the sudden coldness emanating from his mother. He took a deep and somewhat steadying breath and dropped his eyes to the ground.

"I am sorry," Elladan said. "I am ashamed to have said that." His sorrow was genuine. He had not meant to insult both mother and father with such an ill-considered comment.

Celebrian took her hand from his arm and spent a moment mastering her own anger before looking squarely at her son.

"You should be. Your father is an excellent man; well worthy of every honor he has received. There are many great deeds he has done through his long life that _you_ know nothing about. His choices have made him the man that he is." She arched her eyebrow and eyed him speculatively. "What kind of man are you going to be?"

"In this place, who has taught you that elvenkind are better than men? It is taught in other places surely, but have not your father and I taught you better? You are not tainted by any human blood carried through your veins. Just as you are not made any better by any Maia blood from Melian. There is nothing about Elrond's parentage about which to be ashamed. And even if there were...or if there was something to be ashamed of in my parentage, I repeat: What kind of man are you going to be?"

"What has this to do with the human woman?" Feeling fully chastised he tried to change back to the original subject.

"She has a name, Elladan. Perhaps it would be wise of you to start referring to her by it," Celebrian knew what her son was doing, but decided to let the conversation shift stand. This also needed to be spoken of. Though she would not soon forget his bias.

Elladan clenched his jaw. "_Anna,_ then. What does this have to do with _Anna?_" he said, putting unnecessary stress on her name.

"It has everything to do with her!"

"I do not see how. This whole situation started because of Alcarnarmo," Elladan stated angrily.

"Separate yourself from the wrongs that were done to you by Alcarnarmo—for she herself has likely been wronged by him as well. How many of your todays and tomorrows are you going to have taken from you by him?" counseled his mother.

"Imagine yourself in her position. You have suddenly been wrenched from everything that you know and hold dear and placed in a vastly different situation. What would you do? How would you feel?" Celebrian asked. "Ponder these questions. Search deep and then decide what you must do. Do not let yourself be bound by the mistakes or ill will of another. Show compassion and let all your choices be guided by the image of what kind of man you want to be. One day you _might_be a great leader. When that time comes, what kind of leader _will_you be? Feared or respected? Loved or hated? Now is the time to choose."

Elladan decided that the wisest course was to remain silent. He had insulted both father and mother and was quite uncomfortable with the course of the conversation. It made him feel as if he wasn't the victim in the whole situation. That his responsibility was actually more than he had at first imagined or wanted to realize.

"But as to how to treat Anna, she is under your household now. She is not a servant or a slave, nor is she family. You certainly owe her more respect and kindness than it seems that you have already shown. Your father and I have tried to teach you good principles to live by. Now is the chance for you to show what you have learned. Grow beyond what you are."

"Mother," he said, pained.

"I have no wish to injure you, for you are my son and I love you. But just as a tree must be pruned to be as fruitful as possible, so you must also. It hurts sometimes when we have to grow. But I know that you can and will become good and great. If you need an example of what kind of man to be, there are ample of choices around you, starting with your father, human blood included."

Elladan clenched his teeth. It had been a while since he had been so lovingly scolded. He felt like he was ten years old again—and it chaffed. He just needed to get out of this conversation. So he decided to roll on his back and show his throat.

"I will consider all your words, Mother," he said in what he hoped was an appropriately contrite tone.

Celebrian was not fooled. Nevertheless, she chose not to pursue the subject any longer.

"I love you, son," she said and pulled him into an awkward hug. Elladan suffered it with good grace then took his leave and stalked off, very like a cat that has just had a bath shakes off the water and walks away, all offended honor.

Celebrian sighed. She needed to find Elrond.

**/\\/\\/\\**

The next day, waves of anger rolled off of Elladan as he stalked out to the horse pasture. He had spent a sleepless night stewing over the wrongs done to him by Alcarnarmo. Everything had started with him taking Elladan's ring. The escapade yesterday with the hu—_Anna_, he corrected himself mid-thought, had only served to anger him further.

Worst of all, the horrible suspicion that his mother was right kept plaguing him. His injured pride wasn't ready yet to consider that possibility. Wasn't he was the victim in all of this?

**/\\/\\/\\**

Rudy wakened for some reason that he couldn't describe. The night was a dark as it could be with the streetlight streaming through the chinks in mini-blinds. His roommate snored gently in the other bed behind the curtains. There was a brief sound of footsteps through the hall as the night shift CNAs finished their midnight rounds.

Why had he woken up?

There it was again. A pulse went through him, and the hair on the back of his neck prickled. Someone nearby was working magic.

His doom was upon him.

There was a brief thought of hiding and letting the police handle the situation. After all, would anyone coming through the gate be prepared to take on the modern world? He had survived because he had originally landed in a fairly secluded spot.

He discarded this notion almost as quickly as it had arisen. What would the police do with one of the firstborn? It would almost certainly be Elladan that came through the portal and he wouldn't be one to go quietly. The last thing that Rudy wanted in his quiet nursing home was an inter-dimensional incident.

Rudy swung his feet off the side of the bed and sat up, groaning slightly. He really was too old for this. That was why he had sent Anna.

He put his slippers on and transferred slowly over to his wheelchair and left the room, grabbing a lap blanket on his way out. Either he needed it to keep warm, or someone else would need it to cover his dead body.

He took a deep breath while going out of his door. Time to face the music.

**/\\/\\/\\**

The impetus of Elladan's anger carried him about 30 seconds through the portal before the magnitude of what he had done hit him.

He had traveled through the portal without any better plan than to find Alcarnarmo and probably kill him. Truth to tell, the killing part was _technically_ more of a nebulous thought. He just really wanted to hurt him. Badly.

Only, this wasn't anything like the forest glade that he had just left. The lights were bright and glaring, the sounds were completely and utterly alien, and the smell was...indescribable. Really, there wasn't anything in his past experience to compare it to, for which he was eternally grateful.

A beeping sound startled Elladan and he looked around quickly, trying to assess if there was any danger.

Two possibly feminine individuals entered the hallway from some distance away and turned in the opposite direction. They walked the relaxed walk of ones who feared nothing, companionably chatting in a language that wasn't as strange as he thought. _"Anna's language,"_ thought Elladan as he watched them walk away from him. Should he try to make contact? Should he not?

Shortly they went into a door that had a light or lantern above it that was on. The light went off abruptly and the beeping stopped.

Elladan let out his breath a slowly. This probably wasn't the smartest thing he had done in a long time, he decided as he ducked closer to a wall.

He took a moment more to examine his surroundings. The hallway, though wide, felt somehow...less...than the halls that he walked through at home.

A sound came from behind him and he whirled suddenly, instinctively going into an attack stance.

An old man in a chair with wheels turned to meet him, tension evident in both his posture and his voice.

"May the stars rise to greet you," Rudy said as he rolled down the hallway.

Elladan was taken aback for a second. Who was this old man who spoke in perfect Sindarin? He looked closer. There was the set of the jaw, the curve of the face, and the eyes—

"Alcarnarmo?" Elladan said. This couldn't be him. This frail man with one leg sitting in a chair with wheels couldn't be...could he?

He exhaled in frustration, his revenge robbed of its sweetness.

"Indeed."

There was a rather awkward pause.

"I should say that the hall is not the place to be at this point. If you will permit me, I will take you to my room. I have _a roommate_," here Rudy used the English word and then rethought it. "One who boards with me, but he is old and deaf. If you will it, we can speak peacefully there."

"You have proven yourself untrustworthy. I have no reason to follow you there."

"Surely you will not forget those times that I have proven myself faithful?" pleaded Rudy. "There was a time that we were friends."

Elladan looked at him coldly and raised an eyebrow. "You have a strange way of showing that friendship."

Rudy might have known that Elladan would have reacted this way. Fine.

The two women came out of the room behind Elladan. He instinctively backed to the side in order to have both sides of the hallway within easy sight.

_ "Oh, honey," _whispered one aide to the other. _"I call dibs on that one."_

Carla snorted softly, half smiling. Truthfully, she rather agreed with Amber.

_ "Sir, it is past visiting hours," _she said as they walked back towards Elladan. _"Unless you are some close kind of relative, I am going to have to ask you to leave." _

Elladan was unsure of how to respond. A general greeting seemed appropriate.

"May the stars rise to meet you."

_ "Ooh, he's French,"_ said Amber under her breath. _"So mine!"_

Rudy decided that it wasn't as easy watching something happening in front of his very eyes as compared to just thrusting someone through a door and forgetting about it. The disassociation was much more difficult. So, despite the one action (involving a ring) that had severed him from one that he had considered a brother, he found that he still had _some_ loyalty towards Elladan. Enough to keep him from getting entangled in the local law enforcement, at least.

He interjected with the first thing that he could think of. _"He's my grandson," _Rudy lied. _"He's come from cross country for a visit." _

The Carla's eyes flicked between the two men. _"In those clothes?" _

Rudy cursed himself. He'd forgotten about that.

"What is she saying?" asked Elladan.

"I just told them that you are my grandson. I know, I know," Rudy went on quickly. "I hope that it works to keep you out of trouble."

Elladan was about to remark that that had not been his question at all and what did Alcarnarmo think that he was doing saying that! However, since the situation was steadily spiraling out of his control, he left it to his companion to be rid of the two twittering jaybirds that had accosted him.

Rudy decided to go for broke with the lie. _"He is part of a movie that they are shooting near here. I guess that he is getting into character or something and that is why he didn't change before coming to visit." _

The aides looked at each other, testing the other's reaction to such a statement.

_ "What kind of movie?"_ the Amber asked.

_ "I don't know, but I will let you know after I visit with him," _Rudy answered. _ Don't you two have something else to do?" _

_ "Wow, Rudy, there is no call to be rude about it!" _said Carla.

_ "If you have any need of us, be sure to push your button,"_ said Amber as the she hesitated a moment before starting after Carla.

_ "That was unusual,"_ said Amber to Carla as they walked towards the nurse's station. _"I don't think that I have ever seen Rudy that agitated before." _

_ "I know!" _agreed Carla vehemently, _"Why do you suppose that_ _is?"_

_ "You used to be on day shift. Do you know if he had ever had any visitors like _him_ before?" _asked Amber.

Carla thought for a minute. _"No."_ She drew the word out as if unsure. _ "At least I don't think so."_

They had reached the nurse's station by this point and sat down.

_ "That guy was really strange. Handsome, definitely—but strange. His grandson must get his looks from his mother's side." _They giggled a little and then watched as Rudy and his grandson disappeared into Rudy's room._ "Who comes to visit at midnight?"_ asked Amber. It technically was a rhetorical question, but Carla decided to answer anyway.

_ "Those who work the night shift, like us."_

**/\\/\\/\\**

"Where are we going?" Elladan tersely asked.

"I didn't think that you wanted an audience of twittering girls when you decide whether or not to kill me."

Elladan had no answer for that. It echoed his own thought processes rather eerily.

Rudy sighed. "I am taking you to my room so I can explain in peace."

Elladan, at long last, decided to heed the advice of his father and try to figure out all ends before passing a swift and possibly deadly judgment. He might as well follow Alcarnaro for the moment. He certainly had the upper hand if it came to an outright fight.


	8. Chapter 8

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

**Thanks go to my Betas!**

**Thanks for hanging in there for so long! I hope that the wait was worth it. If it wasn't, I humbly apologize. :)  
><strong>

**/\\/\\/\\**

_No man is an Island, entire of itself;  
><em>  
><em>every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were;<br>_  
><em>any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind;<br>_  
><em>And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.<br>_  
>Meditation XVII<br>John Donne (1572 - 1631)

**/\\/\\/\\**

Elladan felt himself start to tremble slightly as he walked through the hallways after Alcarnarmo. _A delayed reaction to traveling in such ways,_ he thought to himself. _I am sure that meeting Alcarnarmo hasn't helped matters. My father doesn't seem to have such troubles. Why can't I be as calm as my father in situations like this? _He clenched his teeth and struggled to bring his body into obedience to his will. _I musn't let Alcarnarmo see! _he thought. Now was not the time to be exhibiting signs of weakness, physical or otherwise.

In the end, it was a short trip, Alcarnarmo leading and Elladan half a step behind and to the right. They passed several doors, some open and some not. The open ones offered glimpses of unfamiliar shaped furniture and blasts of either cold air or warm accompanied by strange scents wafting out of the rooms. Once there was a room with a strange flickering light dancing on the walls with many voices arguing angrily. Elladan stopped for a moment, tensing.

"It's the_ television,_" said Alcarnarmo using the unfamiliar English word. "Don't concern yourself with it. Just know that it will not offer you any physical harm."

Elladan made a noncommittal noise. _No physical harm, _he thought, narrowing his eyes. That didn't mean that it couldn't offer other types of harm. He must be cautious; this could truly be a dangerous place. He walked on, senses straining, alert for any sudden attacks and hoping that any attack would feel the same...regardless of what world he was in. Everything was so cursedly unfamiliar.

"This way," gestured Alcarnarmo, his right hand swinging out in front of Elladan and almost smacking his leg. For a split second, Elladan was tempted to allow his leg to continue on its path and kick the hand out of his way, but the wiser part of his brain checked his impulsively violent action. He stopped abruptly as the wheelchair passed right in front of him and went through an open door.

Elladan hesitated in the doorway, watchful. In the back of his mind, he noticed that his trembling had ceased. A small smile almost made it to his lips.

"You can come in," said Alcarnarmo glancing back at him, unaware of Elladan's resolved conflict. "There is nothing that will jump out and kill you."

Elladan frowned at the unusual phrase. "Your reassurances mean little to me."

"I'm old, Elladan," Alcarnarmo sighed. "I am surrounded by old, sick people. I am missing a leg and I had hoped that I would never have to see you again."

Elladan raised an eyebrow. "That is certainly more forthright than you used to be." Furrowing his brow, he added as an afterthought, "What do I have to do with your leg?"

"I don't have much time left. Why waste it with useless talking?" Alcarnarmo ignored Elladan's question.

"Then I had nothing to do it. I thought not." Elladan stated as he entered and began roaming around the room. "You disappeared before I could get to you." Almost immediately, he noticed a mound lying in a bed partially concealed by a curtain hung from the ceiling. He stopped short while he verified that the person was still asleep. The gentle snore and steady breathing leaned toward yes, but Elladan started forward to both look upon the sleeper and check behind the curtain.

"Don't wake him," warned Alcarnarmo quickly. "Or our quiet little chat would have to move someplace more public. I am certain that you wouldn't want that." The threat hung in the air.

Elladan favored him with a long, slow stare. Alcarnarmo turned away first.

The check around the room was cursory after that. Two beds, personal effects, strange pictures hung in glass (Glass! Wasted on pictures!) on the walls, another door into a smaller room that when opened felt like some strange kind of privy. Anna's world truly was wildly strange. At any cost, however, he must keep the upper hand in this battle of wills between him and Alcarnarmo. Elladan trusted that his senses would warn him of any sudden danger. He hoped.

"If you are finished inspecting my room and all my things, feel free to take a seat," said Alcarnarmo.

Elladan favored him with another look, briefer this time, and leaned against the wall with all points of the room, the window and the door within easy view.

Alcarnarmo tried to move his chair to the extreme right of Elladan's line of vision.

"Stay put," growled Elladan. Alcarnarmo stopped. "I'll ask the questions."

Alcarnarmo stayed silent.

"What do they call you here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Your name," Elladan said pointedly. "It certainly didn't sound like they called you by your given name. With the easy way they spoke to you, I am sure that they weren't calling you by a title of respect, either. So I repeat; what do they call you here?"

"I took on the name of Rudy. Rudolph, actually, but shortened it to Rudy when I came over to the States."

Elladan stayed silent for several seconds waiting for more.

"The States being the country that we are in," Rudy added.

Elladan sighed.

"Maybe I should start a little further back. I landed somewhere over in Europe at the end of what the people here call World War II. When the war was over, I joined the a military group, the French Foreign Legion. I don't suppose you have heard of them?" He looked expectantly up at Elladan and received no response. "I figured that I couldn't get any more foreign, right?"

"I fought with them through two more wars and retired after losing my leg in Algiers, twelve or thirteen years after I got here. I wandered for a bit after that, wound up in the United States and worked for a time here and there. I finally ended up here. I'm considered really old, did you know that?"

"That sounded curiously well-rehearsed," stated Elladan.

Rudy huffed and shook his head slightly. He opened his mouth to speak and Elladan interrupted him.

"Rudy," Alcarnarmo's name in this world sounded strange spoken with Elladan's voice. "Do not trouble me with lies. Now there are two things only that I wish to know: why did you take my ring and why did you send a woman back with it when you were fully capable of doing it yourself?"

"Do I look fully capable?" said Alcarnarmo incredulously. "Anna is the type of person that would have loved to have such a new experience! She can do so well in Imladris—of course once the shock of transition wears off..."

"You cowardly old man!" Elladan cut him off. "Have you truly lost all the sense of honor that you grew up with? Why would you send an inexperienced and unprepared woman to deliver an object that you were honor-bound to return yourself? Do you have any sense of compassion for her?" Elladan heard the hypocrisy in his own voice, but chose to ignore it for the time being. He obliquely promised himself that in the future, he would be better to Anna.

"You know nothing of how it is here!"

"Do I not? You forget, I have seen Anna's transition, as you call it, firsthand and I have seen what kind of man you have become. That tells me much."

"Everything that I have told has been true."

"That may be. However, you have proven yourself faithless in the past. I trusted you then. You asked to look at the ring after I received it from my father. Foolishly, I let you wear it, to put it on and even taught you the passwords—as a secret between boyhood friends. Now I will be the first to admit that that I was not wise to do that. I had supposed that I could trust my friend to treat me with honor and return it to me. What I fool I was. I will not make that mistake again. Everything that you say now is suspect."

Rudy's gaze dropped to the floor. "It was a pretty ring."

"It was pretty," Elladan harshly mimicked Rudy. "I think that the reason went far deeper than that—though I know not what it may be."

"Do you have any idea what it is like to live as a human among so many elves?" asked Rudy. "Always feeling inferior because of it?"

"You were not the only human in the valley. There are many human families of high esteem that live among us. I, myself, have human blood in me," said Elladan.

"Are you truly at peace with your human blood?" asked Alcarnarmo.

Elladan's mouth became a hard line and refused to answer the question. "Do you know what shame you have brought upon your family by becoming a thief?"

Alcarnarmo, eyes glistening, looked up at Elladan. "Did you tell my family what I did?"

"Your parents do not acknowledge you anymore. You are dead to them."

"That is why I never wanted to go back. I never wanted to face either you or them."

"Think of their position. Their eldest son stole an item of great worth from the Master of the Valley's eldest son. If such rebellion goes unpunished, what would happen to the order in the valley?"

"Was my family punished because of me?"

"My father was merciful to them out of regard for their long years of service."

Alcarnarmo nodded as a tear slipped down his cheek. "I am glad of that. I am not worthy of being called their son."

"You have said that you took the ring because it was pretty," mused Elladan. "That may be so."

"Elladan," Alcarnarmo started to plead but Elladan stopped him with a raised hand.

"Alcarnarmo," he said, deadly calm. "You have exiled yourself here. That has been your choice these many long years. That has put you beyond any punishment that I can deliver to you. You have condemned an innocent woman to a similar exile, bound to another realm; orphaned and friendless."

"She will not be friendless long," Alcarnarmo defended himself.

"Doubtless, she will not," Elladan agreed. "Nonetheless, you are the one to blame for that. She can never return to her original home and family."

"Why not?" Alcarnarmo asked. "You came through the gates, why can you not send her back here?"

"Why not?" Elladan asked dangerously as he stepped away from the wall and stood upright, his presence filling the whole room. "This ring will never be allowed back into your hands. What seemed a trifle is now dangerous and terrible."

"It is hardly one of the great rings," stated Alcarnarmo.

"With all the time that you have spent here, it seems that there are some things that you have not forgotten about your past life," muttered Elladan. "No, it is not one of the great rings. Those rings would never be even remotely available to one such as you. Yet, in it its own way, this ring can be just as damaging." Elladan felt keenly aware of the ring uncomfortably warm on his finger. It was nearly time to leave.

"It grieves me that I cannot send Anna back to her home and to her people. Too much has already happened and the consequences may indeed be too great to comprehend. Nonetheless, the path has been set before us. You will remain trapped here. Anna will remain where she is."

"That is a harsh punishment for Anna," said Alcarnarmo.

"You have no one but yourself to blame," returned Elladan. "It grieves me that she must stay. However, I do not think that her fate really mattered to you, else you would not have sent her."

"My exile is no longer a punishment!"

"Is it not?"

"It never was!" protested Alcarnarmo.

Elladan looked meaningfully around the tiny, cluttered room and Alcarnarmo suddenly felt small and insignificant when Elrond's son's regard lighted once more upon him. Alcarnarmo's gaze dropped and he worked his fingers nervously against each other.

"I will leave you, now."

"You are a cruel person, Elladan," said Alcarnarmo softly.

"Indeed, there are some that would say so," Elladan smiled bitterly. "But you have brought on your own penalty, it is none of my making."

"And the penalty for Anna?"

"Is there any to blame but yourself?"

"You," Alcarnarmo said harshly, "I am not the only one to blame. You refuse to send her back."

"I cannot. There are forces at work beyond your understanding." Elladan turned and headed towards the door.

"Wait," Alcarnarmo called. Elladan stopped and looked back for a moment. "Since you refuse to send Anna home, I have something that I want to send with you for her. A gift of sorts." He rolled back to a small table that was by the head of his bed and grabbed what looked like a book and another rectangular object wrapped in brown paper that crinkled. He went back towards Elladan and held them out to him.

"What is this?" Elladan asked, making no move to take the items from Alcanarmo.

"It is a book and a candy bar. Anna always liked _chocolate._ It has been a while. I would expect that she would be craving this after the time that she has been there. The book is merely something written in her own language so she will not forget where she has come from."

"Don't you think you have done enough?" Elladan raised his eyebrow. "I will take no gifts from you."

"It is not for you. It is for Anna," said Alcarnarmo, reaching out to him. "Elladan, you know for yourself that reading can be a great comfort. Do not leave her absolutely comfortless at this time!" Alcarnarmo pleaded. "Take it for her sake, out of pity!"

Elladan hesitated a moment. It was true that reading could be a great comfort. He finally grabbed the items out of Alcarnarmo's hands. "May we never meet again," he said and walked away.

**/\\/\\/\\**

The room light went off at the nurse's station, its summoning beep disturbing the relative rest found in such places late at night.

"It's your turn, Amber," Carla said not even looking up from her book. Amber heaved a deep sigh as she reluctantly got up.

"Be sure to try and stall him if he comes back by. I at least want to look at him again before he goes," said Amber as she went around the station and leaned against the counter.

Carla snorted. "No way," she said waving her hands in emphasis. "There is no way that I am going to do your dirty work for you. I don't even know what to say to people like that."

"You're a bright girl, I am sure that you can think of something."

"He doesn't speak English," protested Carla. "I have a hard enough time speaking to guys in my native tongue without adding a language barrier on top of it!"

Amber waved dismissively as she started down the hall. Carla huffed as the phrase, "Try French," came wafting back to her.

Carla snorted. Her knowledge of the French language consisted of "ooh, la, la". She went back to her textbook and read a little more before she heard the sounds of a sure step coming down the hall and looked up.

There he was. Even more handsome than before, striding down the hallway. Where was Amber? Should she say something? What should she say? _Hey, how ya doing? _ With as stupid as it sounded in her own head, she was sure that it wasn't going to sound any better aloud. You didn't say stuff like that to people like him.

He seemed to not even notice that she was there; he just kept striding down the hallway. Something seemed off about him, she decided. He seemed..._angry? Is that the word I am looking for?_

He continued past the nurse's station towards the laundry. _Wait, the laundry?_ Carla thought to herself. _He should have turned right in front of the station to head out to the exit._

"Excuse me, sir," Carla said a little tentatively. Receiving no reply, she repeated herself a little louder. The man just kept going down the hallway. Now this was really strange. Carla hurried out of the station and down the hall after him.

"Sir," she called. "Sir, the exit is the other way. You can't get out in that direction without setting off an alarm."

Amber stuck her head out into the hallway as she had passed by.

"What's going on?" Amber asked to Carla's back as she followed after Rudy's visitor. She looked back in the room. "I'll be right back," she assured the room's occupant as she rushed out after Carla.

The man suddenly made a sharp turn to the left and disappeared into the laundry storage room. Carla made it to the doorway a scant second after he had entered and paused suddenly, allowing Amber to catch up.

"Where did he go?" asked Amber as they stared into the now empty room.

Carla shrugged and then pushed the door with her foot. It banged against the wall. There was no way that someone could be behind the door.

Carla bit her lip indecisively. "Anything happens you call 911," she said to Amber before hesitantly heading into the room.

"What are you doing?" Amber grabbed at her arm and missed.

"It's empty!" she called out to Amber after sticking her head in the doorway. She could see the entire room and absolutely no one was there.

"Where did he go?" Amber repeated. They both looked at each other in dismay.

The call light went back on, filling the shocked silence with an insistent racket, summoning them back to their duties.

"Should we call the police?" Carla asked.

** /\\/\\/\\**

**Author's Notes:**

**The French Foreign Legion was established in 1831. The wars that Rudy would have been involved in are WWII, The First Indochina War (****1946–54)****, and the Algerian War ( 1954–62) I have Rudy losing his leg in 1956 during the Battle of Algiers, a campaign that lasted nearly a year. Information from articles on Wikipedia: The Battle of Algiers (1957) and French Foreign Legion.**

**RUDOLF (m.) - Old Ger. 'fame + wolf'; **_**alcar**_** "glory, brilliance"; **_**narmo**_** "wolf", thus **_**Alcarnarmo.**_** Taken from Quenya Lapseparma website. I admit it, I am one of those people that look for meanings in names, which is probably why I like Patricia McKillip so much as an author. But I digress. **

**Perhaps the most important to you readers: I am going to finish this particular story arc of what happens to the ring in the next chapter or two. It will not be the conclusion of the Anna and Elladan's story, but it will be the conclusion of this one. I have found that I don't like having a half-completed novel hanging over my head and nor is it fair to you, gentle readers. Therefore, after much thought, I am going to complete the story with a series of one-shots or short multi-chapter stories whenever the muse strikes me. It will be much like Deandra's Elfwine Chronicles; she is in my favorite authors, for those interested.**

**Secondly, as pertaining to a romance between Anna and Elladan. My personal feelings on that front are divided. The portion of me that has attempted to follow canon, yet write things in-between, balks at the idea of a love between human and a mostly elf. According to Tolkien, there were only three: Beren and Luthien, Tuor and Idril, and Aragorn and Arwen (technically a mostly elf). There was an almost marriage between Aegnor and Andreth, but they decided not to marry so that Aegnor wouldn't have to watch Andreth die. Ironically, he died (in battle) before she did. So, what I am trying to say, is that the chances of it really happening are slim to none. **

**However, I have set it up that if I follow certain established mores in the romance genre, it could happen. I have no objection to it, especially since I have messed so much with canon as it is in this story by introducing Anna in the first place. So I put it to you: romance with Elladan or romance with a nice, as yet unintroduced, human male. Or there is a third option as yet unstated: no romance at all. **

** Cast your votes!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Usual disclaimer: pretty obviously not Tolkien.**

Thanks go to my Betas!

**/\\/\\/\\**

_Restore me then my quiet days, and untroubled nights, that the joy of…a tranquil life may henceforth be my portion._

Eusebius, Life of Constantine

**/\\/\\/\\**

_The [autumn] is coming to an end, _

_When can I go home?_

From _Quatrain_ by Du Fu (712-770)

**/\\/\\/\\**

After his return, Elladan just lay in the forest for a moment. He needed time to breathe and to process what had happened. _No wonder Anna was having such a difficult time adjusting_, he thought. _Coming from such a…_ he grimaced, searching for the right words and finally settling on understatement_…a strange place_.

_Well,_ he thought. _That wasn't the wisest move that I have ever made, but what do to now? It was really rather a wasted trip. Alcarnarmo told me essentially nothing,_ he snorted_. And now I have some things of a dubious nature to give to Anna. _

He sat up and looked down at the book that had been given him. It was made in a way that he was not familiar with: the cover was soft and shiny with a drawing of high mountains covered in mist. The title evidently was written over this painting, but Elladan could not read it. It was not bound in thread, but in some way that he couldn't determine. He turned his attention to the bar of, _what had Alcarnarmo called it? Chocolate?_ Again it was sealed in some light and shiny metal that was pounded very thin. Outside it was a covering, very like the paper that the book was made of. _What a wasteful people. Were they so well-off that they could use paper and metal in such a fashion?_

Elladan stood and looked toward the direction of home, mentally shrugging. It wasn't going to concern him any longer. As soon as he could he would enlist his father's aide and destroy the ring and be done with the whole mess.

_With the exception of Anna._ He sighed.

Elladan thought back to the conversation with Alcarnarmo. It was true that he hadn't treated her as well as he ought, especially as a stranger in a strange land...but nonetheless, how was he to have known at that time that she wasn't a danger to Imladris?

However, now that he knew most of the circumstances of her arrival, it was time to make peace with her; especially since she was staying under his care until the end of her days. He sighed again at the weight of that decision as he mounted his horse and headed back.

**/\\/\\/\\**

Anna woke the morning of the fifth day feeling _alive_ for the first time since the shock of arriving. The heavy fog that had enshrouded her seemed to have lifted and with that new clarity of mind Anna came to a few very important decisions. Firstly, she was the master of her own fate and it was time for her to take a more proactive role in her life. Secondly, yes secondly. How was she to get home? Anna pondered on this for a moment.

At this moment, Lerina entered the door with a tray. The smell of food brought Anna's attention to the fact to how hungry and weak that she was. _Why have I been refusing to eat, again?_ Anna couldn't remember.

As she came to herself, Anna realized that she hurt, not just in her ankle, which she remembered spraining, but everywhere. What had she done to be so sore? The memory was a bit hazy, but became a littler clearer as she was awake for a few more minutes.

Ah, yes. She hadn't really been moving these last few days. Except for that trip out into the forest to find the path back home. That inactivity would account for the pain.

But pain was secondary to hunger, right now. Anna tucked into her food with relish, not even being squeamish at the unfamiliar and rather bland dishes. Later, she would try to get Lerina to let her go out into the sunshine. She felt in need of some vitamin D synthesis.

**/\\/\\/\\**

The destruction of the ring was surprisingly lackluster. To any outsider, it would have been a disappointing feat. A couple of Elves gathered in the smithy with one wielding a small hammer and something that looked like a chisel breaking a ring into four parts and then melting it in its separate pieces before putting the cooled bits in a small pile of scrap metal. The whole process did not take more than a morning, and that included getting the fire hot enough in the first place and the clean-up afterward.

If Anna had watched, which she didn't, she would have seen her pathway home destroyed and never even known what had happened.

The reason for this, of course, was the fact that Elrond oversaw the whole process with the power of Vilya; both to destroy and to shield from any unfriendly eyes attuned to the dispersion of the power from Elladan's ring. Elladan himself did all of the manual work under his father's careful eye. Conversations were kept to a minimum, with only certain directions given by Elrond and instantly followed by Elladan.

At the end of the morning, the two walked slowly back to the house. Elrond fell asleep in his garden under a tree for several hours, worn out from his labors, where he was found by Celebrian. He woke as she settled rather awkwardly on the ground next to him, alerted by her presence rather than by any sound that she made as she leaned back against the trunk of the tree. They both then just sat in the kind of companionable silence that a happy couple that has been together for many years share; both gaining strength and rest just by being near to each other.

For his part, after he washed, Elladan just stretched across his bed and stared at the book and the bar of whatever it was that Rudy gave him. He really needed to get that to Anna, he knew, but he was just so tired right now. He needed time to prepare for a meeting with her. And he needed to talk to Glorfindel and Lerina and see how Glorfindel was progressing with the language.

He flipped the book carefully open and started perusing the pages. The paper was not very thick, for it was definitely paper and not anything like vellum. The words were printed in neat rows that didn't seem to be handwritten, either.

A few more pages went by and then suddenly, he found an illustration. A drawing of two trees, each wrapped around a pillar with a star in between. Above it, in the arch, were Feanorian characters, something that he could read. Below in the box were words that Elladan didn't recognize. At least he assumed that they were words. Very likely a translation of what was found above_. The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Say friend and enter. I, Narvi, made them. Celebr__imbor of Hollin drew these signs. _

Now this was something quite disturbing and greatly puzzling. What would a book that was given to him for Anna contain elvish script? And if they did have elvish script, why would Anna not be familiar with elves at all? Of course, he reasoned, she might not have had the training to read them.

Who was Celebrimbor? Elladan knew that was a name that he should remember, but aside from sharing a root word with his grandfather, he couldn't place the name. Elrohir would know—he was good with names. He could also ask him about about the book that Alcarnarmo had given him for Anna.

Elladan groaned and pushed the book away before resting his head in his arms. Alcarnarmo had really done it to him this time. What in the world was this book?

**/\\/\\/\\**

Elladan went searching for Anna after a discussion with first his brother and then his father. For the time being, the book was left in the care of Elrond, he being the Master of the Valley. That suited Elladan just fine, for he had a feeling that his hands were going to be full just in trying to deal with Anna. Handle Anna? Befriend Anna? Take care of her? How exactly did one go about explaining to an individual that doesn't understand her situation what her situation actually is? The sad thing was that Elladan himself wasn't quite sure of it. It was a sticky conundrum. He found himself actually thinking that maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing sticking her out on some human farm on the outskirts of Imladris where he could forget about her. The thought was dismissed almost as soon as it arrived. He knew that it be gravely dishonorable to treat her is such a way. Besides, he knew that his mother would skin him alive if he actually did.

It was in the midst of these musings that he found her outside in one of the gardens adjunct to the healing wing. Actually, he had passed Lerina as she was on her way out on an errand. She had directed him there with a stern warning not to upset Anna. For a brief moment, he had seen a little too much of her father, Glorfindel, in that look and it had him sufficiently cowed. So, he walked into the garden and called to her quietly. It would not do to have her startled because he ended up beside her because he was too quiet.

**/\\/\\/\\**

Anna turned slightly in her chair and watched him approach. This was certainly a different bearing than he had adopted at the other times they had met. She graciously gave him the benefit of the doubt. After all, they were in a pretty public place, and she had a gut feel that Lerina was close by.

"Anna," started Elladan as he gestured toward another chair. "May I sit?"

He seemed to be waiting for something from her. If it was a question that he asked, it had the wrong intonations. Cursed language barrier. Not to mention cultural barriers. He still waited with his arm pointing to the chair. So Anna guessed. _"Sit,"_ she said. _"It would make the both of us more comfortable."_ He made no move, so she motioned. _"Sit,"_ she reiterated.

He sat down gingerly. Despite the fact that she couldn't understand him, he felt that he had to try to tell her what had just happened.

"I went and saw Alcarnarmo. Rudy, he calls himself in your world."

_"Rudy?"_ asked Anna, stopping him. _"You saw Rudy?"_

Elladan nodded at her recognition. "Rudy." He held up one hand. "Alcarnarmo." He held up the other hand and put them together. "Same person."

Anna nodded slowly. He had either just told her that Rudy and whatever the other word was that he just said were the same person, or that Rudy had died, or gotten married, or any number of other things. She either needed to learn the language or go home. There was no middle ground in this.

"Rudy," Elladan continued, using the word that was more familiar to her, "has trapped you in this world with me. Us," he quickly corrected gesturing to Middle-earth as a whole. "But he sent you a gift before I shut the door completely." He held out the chocolate bar.

Anna stared almost uncomprehendingly at the candy bar. _Where did that come from?_ She took it hesitantly, fearing that this connection to her past would disappear. She held it in her hands. It was kind of warm, but not mushy yet. And all of a sudden everything that she had lost was focused in that candy bar. Family and friends, electricity and flushing toilets, familiar foods, a culture that she understood. Everything. The sense of loss fell on her like a wave and she wept slowly at first, there in the garden and in the presence of the person who had threatened her when she had first arrived.

Elladan nearly panicked. Lerina was going to kill him. And it wasn't even his fault. Was it?

Lerina had been watching with Glorfindel from across the garden and had started to move, intent on reaching Anna until her father's hand restrained her. He wanted to see how Elladan dealt with this.

Elladan pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it over to her cautiously.

"It is difficult now," he started. "Things will improve. Since part of the reason that you are here is due to me, I will help you as best as I can."

Anna put the candy bar down and took the handkerchief, still weeping as if there was no tomorrow. It said something as to how distraught she was, but he seemed to be genuinely concerned about her, instead of antagonistic. Nothing made sense to her anymore. _"I'm sorry for crying,"_ she said, embarrassed. _"I'm sorry." _

He did not touch her, for which she was both grateful and sad at the same time. Instead he sang, his voice gentle and calm against the wildness of her emotions. It did help some, but she laughed a little at the silliness of it all. Never had a boy or a man ever sung to her before. Didn't stuff like that only happen in the movies?

**/\\/\\/\\**

Glorfindel and Lerina looked at each other from where they watched at the other side of the garden. Maybe things would work out after all.

**/\\/\\/\\**

**Author's Note:**

**Here is the last chapter in the story of the ring. Obviously, the tale of Anna and Elladan is unfinished. I will probably finish it later through a series of one-shots or vignettes. They will be clearly labeled, though I haven't decided formatting yet. Due to RL, I just can't promise when. **

**Thanks for holding with me through the long wait. It was a remarkable learning experience since this is the longest story that I have ever written in one go. It also started out being one kind of story (a chronicle of a modern human's view of Rivendell) but I found that relationships intrigued me more. **

**Thanks go to all that reviewed, you helped me refine my writing even further. **

**Another note: The actual poem reads as follows: **

_The spring is coming to an end, _

_When can I go home?_

From _Quatrain_ by Du Fu (712-770)

**I changed it to reflect more accurately the season that Anna was experiencing at the moment. **


End file.
